ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Badgers

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the total population of badgers in the UK; and in which areas the population is greatest.

Ben Bradshaw: English Nature advises that there are likely to be in the region of 300,000 to 400,000 badgers in Great Britain. This figure is derived from a National Badger Survey which took place in the mid-1990s.
	The survey also reported that there had been a 77 per cent. increase in badger numbers between the mid-1980s and mid-1990s. The increasing number of applications received by Defra for licences under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 (up 50 per cent. since 1999) suggest that this trend is continuing.
	Badgers densities are highest in the south-west of England, with high densities present throughout southern counties, the west midlands and Wales.
	The Department has been funding the Winter Mammal Monitoring Project which is being carried out by the Mammal Society and the British Trust for Ornithology. This is a pilot study intended to develop a multi-species terrestrial mammal monitoring system. The project is still at the pilot stage—but is intended in the future to provide valuable data on the abundance of mammal species, including badgers. Early findings confirm the pattern of distribution report in the National Badger Survey.
	Full details of the badger survey findings are published in: "Changes in the British badger population, 1988 to 1997" by G. Wilson, S. Harris and G. McLaren (1997), published by the People's Trust for Endangered Species (ISBN 1 85580 018 7).
	Results from the Winter Mammal Monitoring Project are available online at: http://www.bto.org/survey/special/mammal results.htm

Birds of Prey

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the impact of birds of prey eating and preying on other (a) birds, (b) mammals and (c) the food chain.

Ben Bradshaw: A Raptor Working Group was set up in 1995, jointly chaired by the DETR and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, following increasing
	concerns from grouse moor owners and racing pigeon fanciers over the impact of rising raptor populations on bird numbers. The recommendations from the Raptor Working Group's final report, published in 2000, provides the basis for and inform efforts to find an effective and acceptable solution to the problems caused by birds of prey.
	Work is now being taken forward by the country conservation agencies, and other organisations. In addition, English Nature has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Moorland Association on addressing the issue of raptor predation in the uplands.
	Implementation of the Working Group's report's recommendations in Scotland and Wales is a matter for the devolved Administrations. A paper on progress in implementing the recommendations of the Raptor Working Group Report was presented to the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, and noted by them, in September 2003. The paper is now publicly available on their website at: http://www.jncc.gov.uk/management/committee/papers03–09/jncc03N06.pdf
	Copies of the Raptor Working Group report are available from the Library of the House.
	Birds of prey are usually the top predators in their food chains. As with other predatory species, populations of birds of prey are normally heavily influenced by their prey populations rather than the other way around. The available evidence suggests that recovering populations of birds of prey are not responsible for recent declines in some songbirds and that other factors related to habitat change and the intensification of farming are mainly to blame. Although there is little specific information on the impact of birds of prey on mammal or other prey populations in the UK, the same general principle applies and population declines driven solely by predation are highly unlikely. Healthy bird of prey populations can exist only where their main prey species are sufficiently abundant.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of whether wild deer are responsible for the spread of TB to cattle.

Ben Bradshaw: In Great Britain, there is very limited evidence that deer have been responsible for transmitting tuberculosis to cattle. Wild deer in GB have generally been considered a sentinel or 'spill-over' host of infection in cattle and other wildlife, rather than the cause of it. Whether any wild deer populations (of any species) may constitute a reservoir of TB will depend upon the prevalence of TB, density and ecology of the hosts and the pathology that TB shows in those species.
	Defra has funded a survey of wildlife in the Southwest of England by the Central Science Laboratory. The first phase established whether Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis—the causative organism for bovine tuberculosis) was present in a number of wild mammal species, including deer. M. bovis has been confirmed in five of the six established wild and feral species of deer in GB. The second phase of the survey (due to end March 2004) is to estimate prevalence of M. bovis in those species where it is found, by carrying out a more targeted and extensive sampling.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the incidence of TB in cattle by 2008 if current measures are continued and there is no increase in activity by her Department; and what her projections are for costs of compensation for slaughter of cattle reactors in that period.

Ben Bradshaw: Our latest assessment shows that bovine TB restrictions affected 5 per cent. of cattle herds (5,181 herds) in Great Britain at some point between January and November 2003. At any one point in time there are about 3 per cent. of herds under restriction.
	The average annual increase in the number of animals slaughtered as a result of TB control measures between 1990 and 2001 was 20 per cent. It is too early to say whether this long-term trend has been altered by the interruption of the testing programme due to Foot and Mouth disease in 2001, and the priority testing of high-risk herds once the programme resumed.
	In 2002/03 we paid out £31.1 million in TB compensation. With no new changes in policy, or disease dynamics, we could theoretically expect a 20 per cent. year on year increase in the compensation bill.
	However, the TB programme will not remain static over the next four years. We recently consulted on proposals to rationalise compensation arrangements for all notifiable diseases including bovine TB and we will shortly be consulting on proposals for a new TB strategy and options for controlling the geographical spread of the disease in the short term. The key challenge for Government and the farming industry will be to work together to reduce the overall economic impact of bovine TB.

Departmental Advertising

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how much her Department spent on advertising in each year since its creation;
	(2)  how much her Department spent on marketing in each year since its creation.

Margaret Beckett: The Department does not maintain separate records of its expenditure on advertising. The expenditure for publicity by Defra's Communications Directorate, includes marketing, advertising, publications, events, shows and direct information literature mailings, and is recorded for the financial years since Defra's creation in June 2001 as follows:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 2001–02 6.6 
			 2002–03 4.7 
			 2003–04 (1)3.7 
		
	
	(1) Estimated.
	This includes communication on a very wide range of matters of interest, both necessary and beneficial to the public, the wide range of industries in which Defra has an interest, together with local government, voluntary organisations and other bodies.

Large Combustion Plant Directive

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the (a) process and (b) timescale is for reaching a final United Kingdom position on implementation of the Large Combustion Plant Directive.

Alun Michael: We are continuing to assess the potential economic impact of the introduction of the Directive on the UK coal industry, and on the coal-fired electricity generating industry which is its major market, using both internal analyses and independent research. This will enable us to take a final decision on the right implementation approach for the UK in spring 2004.

Energy Efficiency

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer regarding economic means to promote energy efficiency.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The Department holds regular discussions with the Treasury at both official and ministerial level regarding fiscal instruments and how they can continue to be developed and employed to improve the energy efficiency of the economy.
	The Treasury and Defra published last year a joint consultation "Economic Instruments to improve household energy efficiency: consultation document on specific measures". The consultation closed on 24 October with over 80 responses, which are being actively considered to help inform policy development.

Fallen Stock

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on progress towards the setting up of the National Fallen Stock Scheme, with particular reference to the financial structure of the company concerned.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 22 January 2004
	Good progress is being made in setting up the Scheme. The Company which will run the Scheme will be limited by guarantee and operate on a not for profit basis. Initially, it will be wholly government owned and obtain funding to carry out its functions from government aid and farmer subscriptions.

Fisheries

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much her Department has spent on research into the development of selective fishing techniques in each of the last five financial years.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department has spent the following amounts on research into the development of selective fishing techniques in each of the last five financial years:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 2002–03 320,305 
			 2001–02 211,930 
			 2000–01 211,308 
			 1999–2000 141,604 
			 1998–99 166,429

Flooding

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the role of the Environment Agency in the planning process with regard to the building of houses on flood plains.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The Environment Agency has the lead role in providing advice on flood issues both at a strategic level and in relation to planning applications as stated in Planning Policy Guidance on "Development and Flood Risk" (PPG25). The Agency works with local planning authorities to help ensure inappropriate development does not take place in the flood plain.

Flooding

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to change the minimum one-in-75 year flood standard issued by the Government.

Margaret Beckett: No such 'standard' has been issued by the Government. In project appraisal guidance the Department sets out a range of indicative standards depending on land use. For intensively developed urban areas, the indicative target range is from 1 in 50 to 1 in 200 for river floodplains and 1 in 100 to 1 in 300 for areas at risk of coastal flooding. It should be emphasised that many houses situated behind defences with a nominal standard of, say, 1 in 50, will individually have a risk of flooding that is significantly less than this.
	The project appraisal guidance will be subject to review and public consultation later this year but there are no current plans to change the range of indicative standards.

GM Crops

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the recent research by Dr. Charles M. Benbrook on the impact of GM crops on pesticide use in the United States.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment (ACRE) considered the report by Dr. Benbrook as part of its deliberations on the results of the Farm Scale Evaluation (FSE) trials. ACRE'S advice on the FSE results was published on 13 January and we are now considering this.

Snares

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what guidance is issued to gamekeepers and others involved in the setting of snares;
	(2)  what checks are in place to ensure that the law is being enforced with respect to the setting of snares;
	(3)  what obligation the United Kingdom has under the Berne Convention on conservation of European wildlife and their habitats with respect to snaring;
	(4)  when she expects to publish the results of the review of the law relating to the use of snares;
	(5)  what representations she has received about the illegal use of snares; and if she will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 protects all wild birds and certain animals from killing and taking. Under Section 11 of the 1981 Act free running snares are permissible provided that the snare is not placed in such a way to allow injury to any animal listed on Schedule 6 of the 1981 Act, which includes badgers. Section 11(3) makes it an offence to set in position, or knowingly cause or permit to set in position, any snare which is of such a nature and so placed as to be calculated to cause bodily injury to any wild animal. The snare must also be inspected at least once every 24 hours, so as to avoid any animal held in the snare suffering unnecessarily through starvation or dehydration. All non-target species must be released from the snare.
	Free-running snares are not considered an indiscriminate means of either capture or killing provided they are set correctly and are checked every 24 hours. They are designed to be a restraining device that is intended to slacken, not continually tighten, thus not causing bodily injury.
	The purpose of Section 11 is to expressly prohibit the use of indiscriminate means of capture and killing, in accordance with our international obligations, under the Bern Convention. Penalties for offences under Section 11, including not checking snares and not releasing non target species, include fines of up to £5000 and/or a custodial sentence of up to six months for each offence. The Police are the main authority for enforcing this area of legislation.
	The Department does not issue advice to gamekeepers on how snares should be set. However, the British Association of Shooting and Conservation has published a Code of Good Practice and the Game Conservancy Trust includes detailed guidance on best practice with all snares that they sell.
	It is considered that a complete ban on the use of snares might encourage the use of more dangerous, indiscriminate and illegal alternatives, such as poisons. We have no current plans to alter the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 with regard to snares. It is important that until viable alternatives are available to land managers the humane use of traps and snares is improved. Officials have undertaken a stakeholder consultation to assess current practice; identify best practice and methods that cause concern; as well as request suggestions for the improvements of snare operation and any potential alternative methods. The consultation period ended on the 13 November. Officials will be collating the comments over the next few months. A copy of the pre-consultation paper can be found on the Defra website at http://defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/snares/letter.htm
	Officials received 101 responses to the stakeholder consultation.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she has taken to ensure that gardeners are aware of the (a) symptoms and (b) procedures for reporting cases of sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government believe that the public should have as much information as possible about Phytophthora ramorum, the disease known as sudden oak death in the USA. Information about the disease and how to report it is available on the Defra website at http://www.defra.gov.uk/planth/oak.htm. An explanatory leaflet and poster are also available and copies will be placed in the Library of the House. Officials are in regular contact with interested organisations, for example the Royal Horticultural Society and the Horticultural Trades Association, so that information about the disease, its symptoms and guidance on reporting any suspected cases of infection can be disseminated to their members. This information has also appeared in a number of recent press and magazine articles.
	Because the symptoms are difficult to distinguish from those caused by other pathogens, we are not relying on public awareness but are carrying out our own surveys of garden centres and nurseries in order to detect infected plants. Buyers of host species have been advised to check plants before purchase for symptoms of the disease and to contact their supplier if they subsequently develop.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many checks were carried out at ports of entry in order to prevent the import of plants infected with sudden oak death in (a) 2001, (b) 2002 and (c) 2003.

Ben Bradshaw: Defra's plant quarantine surveillance programme is focused at nurseries, garden centres and other places where plants are received, rather than at ports of entry. Until May 2002 host plants of "P. ramorum" in intra-community trade were not subject to any specific plant health controls. The following numbers of inspections were carried out in the last three years on rhododendrons and viburnums, the two plant genera which have most often been found to be infected in Europe:
	
		
			   Nurseries, garden centres etc. At ports 
			  UK Other EC Non-EC  
		
		
			 2001 224 95 17 0 
			 2002 3190 1147 43 1 
			 2003 9081 2667 20 11

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what instructions she gave to port authorities to prevent the import of plants infected with sudden oak death in (a) 2001, (b) 2002 and (c) 2003.

Ben Bradshaw: Inspectors from the Department's Plant Health and Seeds Inspectorate (PHSI) have authority to detain, inspect and sample plants at ports to ensure that they meet import requirements and are not carrying disease. These inspections relate to a wide range of plant pests and pathogens, not just "Phytophthora ramorum" Any consignment found to be infected or not to have the correct documentation is destroyed. In carrying out these duties, the Inspectorate may call on help from Customs, port health authorities and port operators.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what advice she has issued for (a) gardeners and (b) foresters to prevent the spread of sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: Both Defra and the Forestry Commission have published posters and placed information on their websites covering the horticultural and forestry sectors respectively.
	Disease management measures are currently focused on nursery and garden centres to ensure that gardeners and other customers can be confident that they are purchasing disease-free plants. There is, as yet, no evidence that the disease is present on any trees in forests but a survey of 1000 woodland sites is currently underway and we hope, by April, to have a better understanding of the status of the disease in the wider environment. This work will enable us to ensure that appropriate advice is made available to foresters. In addition, the Forestry Commission is advising those engaged in routine forestry operations to take basic hygiene precautions to minimise the possibility of accidentally spreading diseases such as "P. ramorum".

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of (a) trees and (b) plants recover from infection with sudden oak death; and which species are most likely to recover.

Ben Bradshaw: There is at present no evidence, from the UK or anywhere else, to indicate that any plants or trees infected by Phytophthora ramorum might recover. It is for this reason that the current measures require all infected material to be destroyed, either by burning or deep burial. Symptoms of "Phytophthora ramorum" can affect both leaves and stems. In some plants only leaves are affected and in these cases it is possible that plants could recover following the removal of affected leaves. Methods of eradicating infection from specimen plants and of protecting new growth from reinfection are being investigated as part of Defra and the Forestry Commission's programme of research into this disease.
	Sporulation of the fungus on certain shrubs which are themselves relatively unaffected, showing only minor symptoms, is believed to have played a key role in the epidemiology of the disease in California.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  whether she has consulted the national authorities of other countries on the treatment of sudden oak death; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what information she has received from other countries about the treatment of sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: There is regular dialogue between plant health authorities in the UK and those in other countries affected by or at risk from "Phytophthora ramorum". It was as a result of this collaboration that the link was first made, even before the pathogen was identified, between the death of trees in California and symptoms seen on rhododendrons on the continent.
	Exchange of information on Phytophthora ramorum takes place between officials and scientists in EU Member States on a regular basis, particularly within the framework of the Standing Committee on Plant Health. It was as a result of discussion in this forum that EU-wide emergency measures against the introduction and spread of "Phytophthora ramorum" were introduced in November 2002. They were reviewed by the Standing Committee on 11 December last year and it was agreed that they should continue. An EU funded research project on Phytophthora ramorum started this month and a second project is due to start in April. Both are being co-ordinated by UK scientists and involve consortia with members from 6 to 21 countries.
	We have also had regular discussions with officials and scientists in the United States. A US delegation visited in November 2003 and a conference is being organised in the USA in March at which scientists and regulators from a number of countries, including the UK, will discuss developments in research and management of the disease.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will publish the results of research that her Department has commissioned into sudden oak death; what other research into sudden oak death her Department has assessed; and what research projects commissioned by her Department are on-going.

Ben Bradshaw: The results of research conducted on this disease will be published over time. However some preliminary results are already available on the Defra website http://www.defra.gov.uk/planth/phnews/csl.htm. The Forestry Commission are conducting complementary research as part of the same overall programme.
	As this is a relatively new disease the research commissioned in the UK following its discovery in October 2001 is still on-going. Within Europe, the majority of research is UK based. Germany and the Netherlands are also investigating aspects of the disease. Defra and Forestry Commission have good links with scientists in these countries and also with scientists in the USA facilitating a regular exchange of scientific information. As the pathotypes of the disease, the host plant species and the environmental conditions differ between the UK and the USA results may not be directly applicable and therefore must be considered carefully.
	Defra are currently funding four research projects titled:
	1. Comparison of "Phytophthora" ramorum populations from Europe and USA in support of pest risk assessment, management and policy.
	2. Non-tree host range and diagnosis of "Phytophthora ramorum" in support of pest risk assessment, management and policy.
	3. "Phytophthora ramorum" epidemiology: sporulation potential, dispersal, infection and survival.
	4. Epidemiology of natural outbreaks of "Phytophthora ramorum".

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what treatments are available for sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: The only known method of eliminating "Phytophthora ramorum" is the removal and destruction of infected plant material. Currently approved fungicides have a suppressive effect, which masks symptoms rather than eradicating the pathogen from infected plants. However, research at Defra's Central Science Laboratory, funded by the Horticulture Development Council, is looking at a range of substances to evaluate their effectiveness in eradicating infection and preventing reoccurrence.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what organisations in the UK she has consulted on the treatment of sudden oak death; and if she will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department is in regular contact with the Royal Horticultural Society, the Horticultural Trades Association and the National Farmers Union about developments in the treatment of "Phytophthora ramorum".
	Moreover, on 13 October, the Department hosted a meeting on "Phytophthora ramorum" at the Central Science Laboratory in York which was attended by over 65 people representing a range of interested organisations.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  which species are vulnerable to sudden oak death;
	(2)  what plant types are most susceptible to sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is as follows.
	
		Species found to be naturally infected with "Phytophthora ramorum" in America or Europe
		
			 Host Common name Family 
		
		
			 Ornamentals   
			 Arbutus menziesii Madrone Ericaceae 
			 Arbutus unedo Strawberry tree Ericaceae 
			 Arctostaphylos manzanita Manzanita Ericaceae 
			 Camellia spp. Camellia Ericaceae 
			 Hamamelis virginiana Virginian witch hazel Hamamelidaceae 
			 Heteromeles arbutifolia Toyon Rosaceae 
			 Kalmia latifolia. Mountain laurel Ericaceae 
			 Leucothoe spp. Leucothoe Ericaceae 
			 Lonicera hispidula California honeysuckle Caprifoliaceae 
			 Pieris spp. Pieris Ericaceae 
			 Pittosporum undulatum(2) Victorian box Pittosporaceae 
			 Rhamnus californicus Californian coffeeberry Rhamnaceae 
			 Rhamnus purshianus(2) Cascara Rhamnaceae 
			 Rhododendron Rhododendron Ericaceae 
			 Rubus spectabilis(2) Salmonberry Rosaceae 
			 Syringa vulgaris Lilac Oleaceae 
			 Toxicodendron diversilobum(2) Poison oak Anacardiaceae 
			 Trientalis latifolia Western star flower Primulaceae 
			 Umbellularia californica Californian bay laurel Lauraceae 
			 Vaccinium ovatum Californian huckleberry Ericaceae 
			 Vaccinium vitis-idaea Cowberry Ericaceae 
			 Viburnum spp. Viburnum Caprifoliaceae 
			
			 Trees   
			 Abies grandis(2) Grand fir Pinaceae 
			 Acer macrophyllum Big leaf maple Aceraceae 
			 Aesculus californica Californian buckeye Hippocastanaceae 
			 Aesculus hippocastanum Horse chestnut Hippocastanaceae 
			 Castanea sativa Sweet chestnut Fagaceae 
			 Corylus cornuta(2) Californian hazelnut Betulaceae 
			 Fagus sylvatica Beech Fagaceae 
			 Lithocarpus densiflorus Tan Oak Fagaceae 
			 Pseudotsuga menziesii Douglas fir Pinaceae 
			 Quercus agrifolia Coast live oak Fagaceae 
			 Quercus cerris Turkey oak Fagaceae 
			 Quercus chrysolepsis Canyon live oak Fagaceae 
			 Quercus falcata Southern red oak Fagaceae 
			 Quercus ilex Holm oak Fagaceae 
			 Quercus kellogii Californian black oak Fagaceae 
			 Quercus parvula var shrevei Shreve's oak Fagaceae 
			 Quercus rubra Red oak Fagaceae 
			 Taxus baccata Yew Taxaceae 
			 Sequoia sempervirens Coast redwood Taxodiaceae 
		
	
	(2) Hosts from which the pathogen has been cultured and/or detected by DNA tests, but pathogenicity not confirmed by laboratory.
	
		Plants most likely to be potential hosts based on previous results of laboratory inoculation tests
		
			 Plant species Common name Family 
		
		
			  Ornamentals or wild shrubs 
			 Arctostaphylos uva- ursi Bearberry Ericaceae 
			 Eucalyptus Eucalyptus Myrtaceae 
			 Fuchsia spp. Fuchsia Onagraceae 
			 Gaultheria spp. — Ericaceae 
			 Lonicera spp. Honeysuckle Caprifoliaceae 
			 Olea europea Olive Oleaceae 
			 Photinia arbutifolia — Rosaceae 
			 Prunus spp. Nectarine; cherry; Portuguese and cherry laurel Rosaceae 
			 Ribes sanguineum Current Grossulariaceae 
			 Rosa canina Dog rose Rosaceae 
			 Sambucus spp. e.g. elder Caprifoliaceae 
			 Symphoricarpus albus Snowberry Caprifoliaceae 
			 Vaccinium myrtillus Bilberry Ericaceae 
			 Vaccinium x intermedium Bilberry-cowberry hybrid Ericaceae 
			
			 Trees (3)   
			 Abies procera Noble fir Pinaceae 
			 Acer spp. Maple/sycamore Aceraceae 
			 Carpinus Hornbeam Betulaceae 
			 Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Lawson's cypress Cupressaceae 
			 Fraxinus excelsior Ash Oleaceae 
			 Malus sylvestris Crab apple Rosaceae 
			 Picea sitchensis Sitka spruce Pinaceae 
			 Picea abies Norway spruce Pinaceae 
			 Quercus spp. Oaks Fagaceae 
			 Tilia cordata Small-leaved lime Tiliaceae 
			 Tsuga heterophylla Western hemlock Pinaceae 
			 Ulmus glabra Wych elm Ulmaceae 
		
	
	(3) Based on either sapling or mature log tests, and/or leaf tests. Tests may have been done using wound inoculation and may not predict natural susceptibility of unwounded tissue. Sapling susceptibility does not necessarily predict mature tree susceptibility. (NB. The table is not completely comprehensive, but includes only those considered to have most potential for natural susceptibility)

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her Department's budget is for the prevention of the spread of sudden oak death in 2003–04.

Ben Bradshaw: Defra's 75 Plant Health and Seeds Inspectors are already employed for around 20 per cent. of their time on inspection and surveillance duties related to Phytophthora ramorum, known in the USA as sudden oak death. Therefore, although there is no specific budget allocation, this amounts to an expenditure of approximately £1.8 million in 2003–2004.
	In response to the growing number of findings of this pathogen in England and Wales, Defra is redeploying around 20 additional staff to assist the Inspectorate in undertaking extra inspections at production nurseries, wild planting areas and ports of entry. They will be supplemented by the recruitment of six additional full time Inspectors for 2004–05. This is part of a package of measures announced on 4 December.
	The Forestry Commission has diverted existing resources into a survey of woodlands thought to be at the highest risk of infection. This will cost in the region of £45,000.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many individual sites have reported incidents of sudden oak death in the recent outbreak.

Ben Bradshaw: Although P. ramorum is a 'notifiable disease', it is difficult to identify visually, and symptoms are similar to those caused by other organisms. We do not rely on reports in order to locate outbreaks. Defra's Plant Health and Seeds Inspectors are carrying out inspections of all known nurseries and garden centres which trade in susceptible plants. They are also surveying other areas where susceptible plants are established (e.g. rhododendrons in historic gardens), and co-ordinating with the Forestry Commission inspectors who are surveying woodlands. Since the first finding was confirmed in April 2002, outbreaks at individual sites in England and Wales have now reached 302.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many cases of sudden oak death have been reported in each of the last five years.

Ben Bradshaw: Phytophthora ramorum was first described as a new species in October 2001 and the first outbreak in the UK was not confirmed until April 2002.
	130 cases of infection were confirmed in 2002 and 171 in 2003.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she intends to increase the amount of money spent by her Department on research into sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: During this financial year additional money was allocated to the budget responsible for funding research on Phytophthora ramorum. The budget for the coming year has also been increased. The need for research on different plant health risks is regularly reviewed and any issues of redeployment of effort or funding addressed as necessary.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in which soil types sudden oak death has been found to flourish.

Ben Bradshaw: From limited findings on plants growing in soil in the UK (as opposed to container grown nursery stock), it is hard to draw any firm conclusions. Many of the most susceptible host plants of Phytophthora ramorum are members of the Ericaceae family which are known to prefer acid soil.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much money has been spent by her Department on research into sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: To date Defra has commissioned research projects to a total value of £391k.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the risk to (a) nurseries, (b) gardens and (c) the countryside from sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: A Pest Risk Analysis (PRA) for the organism causing sudden oak death in California was first conducted in the UK by Forest Research in September 2000.
	In November 2001 the causal organism was described as a new species, Phytophthora ramorum. Since that time research has been commissioned both in the UK and in the USA, the results of which are being used to develop the PRA, along with field observations from the UK, Europe and the USA.
	The PRA has assessed the risks posed to naturally and experimentally susceptible plant species, including those raised on nurseries, grown in gardens and occurring naturally in the countryside.
	The assessment is updated as scientific knowledge about this disease increases. Copies of the risk assessment were placed in the Library of the House on 13 February 2003 and updates have since been placed on the Defra website at http://www.defra.gov.uk/planth/pra.htm.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many (a) of her Department's staff and (b) sub-contractors employed by her Department are researching sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department has commissioned several research projects into the disease at the Central Science Laboratory (an executive agency of Defra), Forest Research (an agency of the Forestry Commission) and ADAS Consulting. In total there are approximately 22 staff working on these research projects. Around 20 per cent. of the work of the Plant Health and Seeds Inspectorate is currently spent on surveys aiming to determine the distribution of the pathogen and take action against it. This represents the equivalent of approximately 20 staff. A further twelve staff have been transferred from elsewhere in the Department to assist with the surveys.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures she has taken to encourage research into the (a) effect and (b) spread of sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: Since June 2002 the Department has commissioned research to the value of about £391k to investigate aspects of the biology of the disease including its effect and means of transmission between plants. The research programme is co-ordinated with, other research funded by the Forestry Commission and the Horticultural Development Council in order to maximise the scientific information obtained about this disease. Approximately 20 per cent. of the work of Defra's Plant Health and Seeds Inspectorate over the last year has been directed at surveillance for this pathogen.

Sudden Oak Death

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether her Department operates a compensation scheme for those affected by sudden oak death.

Ben Bradshaw: Plant disease campaigns over many years have not incorporated compensation for the destruction of affected plants. The one exception was the campaign against beet rhizomania disease from 1987 to 2001 when compensation was paid from an industry funded scheme. Our judgment is that the limited resources of the plant health service are better deployed in detecting and identifying outbreaks, and in carrying out research on risks and risk management measures. We have recently received an approach from industry organisations wishing to discuss possible risk-sharing mechanisms to avoid disproportionate losses to individual enterprises when action has to be taken against plant pests or diseases. We welcome this opportunity to explore the available options.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Adam Smith Institute

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what work his Department has commissioned from the Adam Smith Institute in the last five years; and how much each of these projects cost.

Hilary Benn: Pursuant to the response given to the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetlands on 12 January 2004, Official Report, column 518W which gave the figures for the original value of contracts awarded to Adam Smith International Ltd. The following table sets out the current value of these contracts, made up of the original value plus any increases or extensions since. All contracts with Adam Smith International Ltd. have been awarded and managed in line with DFID's standard procurement procedures.
	
		
			  Project title Current value (£) (original contract value plus cost of any increases or extensions) Country 
		
		
			 1999 PR Unit Support for Parastatal Sector Reform Commission (PSRC) 430,625 Tanzania 
			 1999 Privatisation Project Phase 3 and 4 Managing Consultant 1,718,736 Guyana 
			 1999 Privatisation Agency Support Project Consultancy 560,752 Zimbabwe 
			 1999 Technical Assistance for Public Enterprise Reform in Orissa 3,667,571 India 
			 1999 Assistance to the Palestinian Negotiations Affairs Department 9,131,555 West Bank and Gaza 
			 1999 Additional Support to the Privatisation Board 106,241 Bangladesh 
			 1999 UK-Ireland Privatisation and Regulation Study Tour 11,145 Tanzania 
			 1999 Medium Term Programme of Capacity Building for PURC 1,559,960 Ghana 
			 1999 Initital Support to the Budgetary Processes of the Government of Macedonia 44,315 Macedonia 
			 2000 Rehabilitation of Cyclone Damaged Lift Irrigation Points in Orissa 1,296,327 India 
			 2000 Seminar on Export Credits and Developing Countries 102,594 United Kingdom 
			 2000 Lead Adviser to Parastatal Sector Reform Commission (PSCR) 229,966 Tanzania 
			 2000 Russia Trade Policy Project 1,199,986 Russia 
			 2001 Conference on Disinvestment 70,000 India 
			 2001 Support for Public Sector Undertaking Reforms & Social Safety Net in Madhya Pradesh 80,000 India 
			 2001 PSCR: Water Privatisation and Regulation Study Tour 54,924 Tanzania 
			 2001 Communications Film for Department of Disinvestment 89,500 India 
			 2001 Consultants for Standards, Technical Regulatory Barriers Programme 92,870 Global (non project specific) 
			 2002 Trade Training for DFID Staff 20,075 United Kingdom 
			 2002 Pilot Training and Capacity Building in International Watercourse Law 151,008 Kyrgyz Republic 
			 2002 Trade Training for DFID Staff—Bangkok 32,328 United Kingdom 
			 2002 Support for Capacity-building in the Ministry of Finance and Central Bank 3,277,815 Afghanistan 
			 2003 Support Services for Public Enterprise Restructuring in South Africa 6,363,435 South Africa, Republic of 
			 2003 Support to Water Sector Regulation by PURC—Ghana 1,079,100 Ghana 
			 2003 Andhra Pradesh Economic Restructuring Programme—Public Enterprise Reforms, Phase II 416,435 India 
			 2003 Economic Support within 1st Military Division HQ Basra. 55,510 Iraq 
			 2003 Economic Development within 1st Military Division HQ Basra. 119,848 Iraq 
			 2003 Support to the Office of the Prime Minister and to the Cabinet Office. 100,400 West Bank and Gaza 
			 2003 ITD—DFID Staff Training 288,685 Global (non project specific) 
			 2003 Asia Trade Consultancy 44,200 United Kingdom 
			 2003 International Lawyer within 1st Military Division HQ Basra. 131,868 Iraq 
			 2003 Economic Support to Coalition Provisional Authority South (CPAS) 111,255 Iraq 
			 2003 Secondment of Negotiations Support Staff to the Office of Prime Minister. 75,800 West Bank and Gaza 
			  Legal Adviser within Coalition Provisional Authority South (CPAS) 72,925 Iraq 
		
	
	Note:
	DFID contracts have been subject to untied international competition since 2001, using the EU Public Procurement Regulations.

Adam Smith Institute

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 12 January 2004, Official Report, column 518W, on the Adam Smith Institute, how much his Department has spent on work undertaken by the Adam Smith Institute in each of the last 10 years.

Hilary Benn: Information on payments is only available for the last six years. Payments to Adam Smith International Ltd. were as follows:
	
		Adam Smith International Ltd.
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1998 1,547,082.92 
			 1999 3,494,546.98 
			 2000 5,450,964.35 
			 2001 9,612,801.56 
			 2002 7,050,473.82 
			 2003 7,289,363.19 
		
	
	The above does not include payment data for any lower value locally let contracts. This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Adam Smith Institute

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what outcomes have been monitored arising from contracted services provided to his Department by the Adam Smith Institute and its subsidiaries.

Hilary Benn: All DFID projects are monitored to ensure contracted services make the intended contribution to project outcomes. We have not made special arrangements for consultancy advice from Adam Smith International Ltd.

Advertising and Information

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much (a) his Department and (b) each agency and non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department has spent on (i) advertising and (ii) information campaigns in each year from 1995–96 to 2003–04 (estimated); and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: Our expenditure on Publicity, which forms a part of our effort to raise development awareness and understanding of international development issues in the UK, has been as follows:
	
		
			 Year £ 
		
		
			 1995–96 568,775 
			 1996–97 579,916 
			 1999–99 399,755 
			 1999–2000 674,531 
			 2000–01 1,484,281 
			 2001–02 1,286,053 
			 2002–03 (4)1,300,000  
			 2003–04 (5)850,000 
		
	
	(4)Estimate
	(5)Provisional forecast figure
	We do not hold a separate advertising budget, The majority of advertising relates to recruitment advertising in newspapers and journals. Figures for the four calendar years are as follows:
	
		
			 Year Number 
		
		
			 2000 751,972 
			 2001 1,208,191 
			 2002 914,571 
			 2003 871,246

Afghanistan

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many refugees have returned to Afghanistan from refugee camps in (a) Iran and (b) Pakistan; and how many remain.

Hilary Benn: At the beginning of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR's) repatriation programme in April 2002, UNHCR's estimate of the Afghan refugee caseload in Iran was 1.5 million. Since then, over 500,000 people have returned to Afghanistan. Only five per cent. of these are believed to have originated in camps.
	In Pakistan, the refugee caseload was estimated at 3.5 million in March 2002. Over 1.5 million were repatriated in 2002 and over 300,000 returned in 2003. The bulk of returnees so far, has consisted of refugees living in urban areas rather than camps. The 1.5 million remaining in Pakistan almost all live in camps.

Afghanistan

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many Afghans in refugee camps belong to women-headed households.

Hilary Benn: The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as yet have no specific figures for the number of Afghans in refugee camps belonging to women-headed households. The most detailed information they can currently offer is that approximately 50 to 60 per cent. of refugees in camps in Pakistan are women and that five to 10 per cent. of these are of adult age. In Iran, only five per cent. of refugees live in camps, and of these, only 38 per cent. are women.
	UNHCR, however, anticipate that more detailed information will become available over the next year. Elections in Afghanistan are planned for June 2004 and UNHCR is currently discussing ways to carry out voter registration for Afghan refugees with the Government of Pakistan and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). This should start to shed more light on the make-up of the refugee population. UNHCR also has plans for a separate census, which the Government of Pakistan have asked them to carry out in order to get a better picture of the remaining refugee caseload in Pakistan. It is expected that this will be carried out after voter registration of refugees to avoid confusion. UNHCR believes this will provide an insight, among other things, into the number of women-headed households and their dependents.

Civil Servants

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much space, expressed in square metres, the Department occupies for the offices of civil servants in (a) central London and (b) Greater London.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID occupies two offices in Central London, at 1 Palace street, SW1 and 20 Victoria street SW1. The sizes of these are 15,910 sq m and 1,178 sq m respectively. We have no other offices in Central London.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the Rwandan Government concerning military activity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Chris Mullin: I have been asked to reply.
	We discuss regularly with the Government of Rwanda the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Since the withdrawal of the Rwandan Defence Force (RDF) from the DRC in October 2002 we have received several unconfirmed reports from a variety of sources about the continued presence of RDF personnel in eastern DRC. The UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC) has investigated these reports but has found no evidence to substantiate them. The Rwandan government, with whom we have raised these allegations, have denied they have forces in the DRC.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the number of internally displaced people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, broken down by region.

Hilary Benn: The most recent statistical data available from the Relief Web, puts the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at over three million. These IDPs are mainly in eastern DRC.
	The breakdown by numbers is as follows:
	
		
			 Democratic Republic of Congo Number 
		
		
			 Kinshasa 41,000 
			 Equateur Province 168,000 
			 Kasai Occidental 72,500 
			 Kasai Oriental 72,500 
			 Katanga Province 412,000 
			 Maniema 234,000 
			 North Kivu 1,209,000 
			 South Kivu 413,700 
			 Orientale 791,000

Departmental Funding

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list the organisations funded by his Department in each of the last three years which have received (a) less than £1 million, (b) less than £750,000, (c) less than £500,000, (d) less than £250,000 and (e) less than £100,000.

Hilary Benn: This information is not readily available in respect of every type of organisation and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the funding DFID has provided to UK based civil society organisations within each of the financial thresholds over the last three financial years has been placed in the Library in a document entitled "Funding to UK Civil Society Organisations—Written Parliamentary Question 148548".

EU Aid Projects

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list current EU aid projects.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: A breakdown of European Commission official development assistance in 2002 by country/region and sector, and details of individual project commitments can be found in the "Annual Report 2003 from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the EC Development Policy and the Implementation of External Assistance in 2002"; a copy of which is in the Library of the House. Copies of the EC's Country and Regional Strategy Papers can be obtained from its website (www.europa.eu.int).

EU Aid Projects

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff in his Department devote a proportion of their working time to involvement in EU aid projects, broken down by grade.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID's European Union department currently has a complement of 15 staff, headed by a Senior Civil Service Grade 5, and including four middle management grades and 10 junior management and administrative officers.
	In addition, staff across the range of departments within DFID are engaged on work related to the EC's development assistance programmes. It is not possible to provide a breakdown by grade.

Global Fund

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine of the performance of the Global Health Fund.

Hilary Benn: As a board member of the Global Fund, we want to see that it clearly demonstrates its effectiveness as an instrument to tackle these three terrible diseases.
	The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine's (LSHTM) study showed that there is commitment to achieving the goals of the Global Fund and that it has had a positive effect in attracting new partners to the Fund. It also highlights the need for improved communication between countries and the Global Fund, and the Country Coordination Mechanisms. It shows the need for harmonisation of funding flows, a good financial management system and planning process and alignment of Global Fund activities with countries' own systems and processes. We are working closely with the Global Fund on all these issues.
	DFID supports the role of independent evaluators and their contribution to improving performance through sound analysis. We recognise that such evaluations should be forward looking and form part of the Global Fund's overall monitoring and evaluation strategy.

HIV/AIDS

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support he provides to programmes in the Great Lakes region of Africa that educate HIV-positive men about treatment for their condition.

Hilary Benn: DFID is supporting work on HIV in Rwanda, Burundi and the DRC. Our support to Burundi and Rwanda through the International Partnership against AIDS in Africa (IPAA), totalling £4.15 million for Burundi and £2.95 million for Rwanda over a three-year period, includes support for the education of HIV-positive men.
	In the DRC, we have been supporting projects run by Médecins sans Frontières and Population Services International (PSI), which also cover the education of HIV-positive men. We plan to further increase our support to the fight against HIV/AIDS as an identified priority in DFID's recently published Country Engagement Plan for the DRC.

HIV/AIDS

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with (a) non-governmental organisations and (b) the UN concerning provision for AIDS orphans in Africa.

Hilary Benn: Meeting the needs of the growing number of orphans and vulnerable children in Africa is a challenge that the Department for International Development is determined to address effectively. DFID is continuing its work and discussions with the United Nations Joint Programme for HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) who are co-ordinating other development agencies and NGOs to develop: treatment programmes to prolong the lives of parents; free access to education and enhanced support to the families and communities caring for orphans and vulnerable children.
	DFID is working with NGOs in a number of countries. In Zimbabwe, DFID is providing support for orphans and vulnerable children and child headed households through its NGO feeding programme. In addition, a bilateral programme with the Zimbabwe Red Cross and John Snow International is providing food to households affected by AIDS (including child-headed households) and some orphanages. We are also starting work with a faith-based organisation in South Africa (the Church of the Province of Southern Africa) to reduce stigma, improve home-based care and care for orphans and vulnerable children.
	The launch of the UK's "Call for Action on HIV/AIDS" (On World Aids Day 1 December 2003) marked the first step in the intensification of this Government's efforts to tackle HIV/AIDS. On World Aids Day I hosted a meeting with NGO's on the UK's "Call for Action" and a new UK Strategy for HIV/AIDS. The issue of how to respond to the growing number of orphans and children made vulnerable by AIDS was raised during this meeting. We will be consulting further with NGOs on this important issue as part of our consultation process for the UK Strategy planned for publication in July 2004.

HIV/AIDS

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans he has for ensuring the adequacy of healthcare systems in countries likely to (a) obtain and (b) use antiretroviral drugs for treatment of AIDS.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID is committed to increasing access to treatment as part of a comprehensive response to HIV/AIDS, and welcomes the WHO/UNAIDS target to get three million people on treatment by 2005. The UK will provide £12.5 million to the World Health Organisation in 2003–04 to support its work, including '3 by 5'. We have supported WHO to make the strengthening of health services a key part of their strategy to reach the '3 by 5' target. As treatment programmes are expanded it will be essential to invest in health systems in order to ensure that services for HIV, including voluntary counselling and testing and the provision of treatment, and other health services, are of good quality and accessible by poor communities and particularly women. This includes better co-ordination of public, private and NGO treatment initiatives. We also support community involvement in health service delivery as a well-informed civil society has been shown to be essential in the sustainability of comprehensive health systems.
	DFID has provided £1.5 billion since 1997 to the strengthening of health systems in developing countries and we see this as an essential element of the response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. We are working with partners to build sound healthcare systems as the cornerstone of efforts to accelerate progress to achieve the Millennium Development Goals; to improve maternal and child health and reduce the impact of HIV and other major communicable diseases. The UK was a prime mover in setting up the High Level Forum on Health MDGs, which was held in Geneva in January 2004 and at which developing and donor countries discussed concrete actions to increase health service capacity to meet international development goals. DFID also supports the integration of HIV/AIDS into wider health sector policies and national poverty reduction strategies.

Infant Mortality

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the result has been of the support provided by his Department to the Africa Regional Office of the World Health Organisation for malaria and childhood illness activities.

Hilary Benn: DFID has agreed an £18 million, six-year project of support to WHO Africa Regional Office in 2002 and it is now at the early stages of implementation. We reviewed progress in 2003 and felt that that the project was well on track. All the countries supported under the project having developed Roll Back Malaria (RBM) and Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) plans.
	Countries supported under the project have been able to use their malaria control plans to make applications to the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM). The plans have helped GFATM approve and release significant malaria grants for six countries in the region. WHO has established an inter-country team for the region, which has responded to a number of emergencies such as flood assessments in Malawi and Mozambique. At the same time it has helped to develop country capacity through training and strengthening health systems.
	The IMCI strategy is being implemented in most countries of the region and seven are now implementing it in more than 50 per cent. of their districts. There have been major achievements in improving health worker skills, demonstrated through Health Facility Surveys and Multi-Country Evaluations. Attention will now be focused upon strengthening some of the health systems issues in the delivery of IMCI.
	Finally, the WHO's Regional Office for Africa (AFRO) itself has used the project to increase its institutional capacity and has recruited additional staff to work on both RBM and IMCI.

Infant Mortality

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the involvement of his Department has been in international forums which form strategies to reduce child mortality, with particular reference to (a) the Child Survival Working Group and (b) the Saving Newborn Lives Initiative.

Hilary Benn: It is generally accepted that a significant improvement will be needed if, the MDG target to reduce under five mortality rates by two thirds by 2015 is to be achieved globally. Challenges include: the HIV/AIDS epidemic; economic decline and persistent poverty; inequality; under-resourced and poorly functioning health systems; and lack of progress in reducing the number of deaths of newborn babies.
	In addition to country-level work, the Department for International Development makes significant contributions to UNFPA, UNICEF, the World Bank, the World Health Organisation and other international and national civil society groups to support their efforts to improve both maternal and child health. We contribute to global initiatives such as the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria, the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization and Roll Back Malaria, which have helped revitalise interest in childhood diseases and substantially increased the resources directed to child health. We support implementation of the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness Initiative with partners from the United Nations International Children's Fund, the World Health Organisation, the World Bank and the United States Agency for International Development. This initiative is building the quality and quantity of child health care within countries. The UK is also part of the recently inaugurated High Level Forum on Health which plans to address challenges to achieving the health related Millennium Development Goals.
	A Child Survival Partnership (formerly Working Group) is being proposed by a number of international agencies which will bring together national governments, international organisations, donors and civil society
	"to galvanise action at the global and national level aimed at revitalizing efforts to reach the under five mortality MDG target".
	The specific activities that the partnership will undertake have not yet been defined, although they are likely to include advocacy for increased resources to be devoted to child survival, and work to scale up cost-effective child survival interventions at country level. DFID has been asked to contribute to thinking on the partnerships structure and objectives. As with any new initiative, over time we will judge the level of our involvement on its ability to deliver on its objectives and contribution to meeting the MDG targets.
	We have been working with the Saving Newborn Lives Initiative (a Save the Children US Gates Foundation funded project) and the World Health Organisation to develop a Framework for Neonatal Health, which will provide a series of practical and flexible tools to enable policy makers to develop coherent and integrated strategies to reduce newborn deaths.
	DFID is also represented on the steering committee of the Partnership for Safe Motherhood and Newborn Health together with the World Bank, the WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, and other organisations.

Iraq

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the Department's role is in the allocation of Coalition Provisional Authority funds.

Hilary Benn: The Head of DFID's office in Baghdad is the UK voting member of the Programme Review Board, which approves Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) plans for expenditure from the Development Fund for Iraq. DFID secondees to the CPA also have a role, alongside US and other Coalition partners, in drawing up CPA expenditure plans. The US Government decide on the allocation of their own funding provided through the CPA.

Iraq

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many recent meetings officials from his Department have had with local Iraqi non-governmental organisations; and what the results of those meetings have been.

Hilary Benn: On average five to 10 Iraqi non-governmental organisations (NGOs) visit the DFID office in Baghdad each week (most NGOs prefer not to meet on their own premises). DFID has also sponsored several meetings, particularly on women's political participation and human rights, involving several hundred attendees, many of whom are from small Iraqi NGOs.
	The issues raised by the NGOs range widely. One frequent topic is how best DFID and the coalition as a whole can support the development of Iraqi civil society. These discussions inform the development of DFID's strategy and our approach to funding. But many of the NGOs are embryonic and are simply seeking guidance on how to establish themselves properly. We are working with the Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation and the Coalition Provisional Authority on a registration scheme for all NGOs in Iraq.

Iraq

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the number of humanitarian aid stockpiles in Iraq that have been (a) destroyed and (b) stolen since April 2003.

Hilary Benn: DFID is not aware of any DFID-funded NGO or UN humanitarian aid stockpiles being destroyed or stolen since April 2003. However, some of our regular partners have had problems with other stockpiles. A warehouse of International Federation of Red Cross/Red Crescent Society goods funded by ECHO (and therefore 19 per cent. DFID-funded) was looted in April. The total stock was valued at approximately £280,000. An ICRC warehouse also suffered from looting during this period resulting in the loss of approximately £65,000 worth of stock as well as some vehicles being damaged or stolen.
	In addition, there were small losses of some perishable foodstuffs and medicines under the UN Oil For Food programme, due to delays in transporting goods during and immediately after the conflict.

Iraq

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much money his Department has provided to the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees since the start of the conflict with Iraq to assist with its work in Iraq and neighbouring countries.

Hilary Benn: DFID provided £1.75 million to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to support its work in Iraq and neighbouring countries in preparedness for the conflict. No further funding has been provided to UNHCR since the conflict.

Iraq

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what progress has been made with the plan of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to assist the return of up to half a million Iraqi refugees;
	(2)  what progress has been made with plans to assist those displaced before the conflict in Iraq to return home.

Hilary Benn: Since the end of the conflict, United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has facilitated the return of relatively small numbers of Iraqi refugees. These include the voluntary return of over 4,000 Iraqi refugees who spent more than 12 years in the Rafha refugee camp in Saudi Arabia, and some 800 refugees from Iran.
	UNHCR is not encouraging returns to Iraq because of insecurity in parts of the country, a lack of humanitarian access, and economic conditions that cannot support mass returns. However, UNHCR is supporting, where it can, the repatriation of people who actively seek to go back regardless of conditions inside the country. It appears that increasing numbers of refugees in neighbouring countries, particularly Iran, are choosing to return to Iraq without support.
	Once conditions in Iraq improve, UNHCR plans to step up its work with the Iraqi authorities, the CPA, and governments in countries of asylum, as well as other United Nations agencies and NGO partners, to support the return of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs). UNHCR has launched pilot projects for the return and reintegration of refugees and IDPs in the northern governorates of Erbil and Dohuk. These projects aim to provide shelter kits to returnee families and to upgrade water supplies for returnees and host communities.
	An Iraqi Property Claims Commission is being set up to help resolve the claims of returnees whose property was confiscated under previous regimes. A new Ministry of Displacement and Migration has been established to manage issues relating to Iraqi refugees and displaced people.
	Further information on UNHCR's work can be found at: http://www.unhcr.ch/welcome.htm

Iraq

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list the drugs of which there is a shortage in Iraq; and what conditions they are intended to treat.

Hilary Benn: The Iraqi Ministry of Health, the Coalition Provisional Authority and the World Health Organisation are working together on a comprehensive assessment of shortages of drugs, other medical supplies and equipment. This is expected to be complete by March.

Maternal Mortality

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action his Department has taken to improve (a) coverage of skilled care at delivery and (b) the use of emergency obstetric care to reduce maternal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa.

Hilary Benn: The Millennium Development Goals are central to the Department for International Development's work, including the goal to improve maternal health, and its associated target of reducing maternal mortality. Constraints to reducing maternal deaths in Africa are weak and under-resourced health systems and the general human resource crisis in the health sector.
	Access to skilled care at birth and emergency obstetric care are main elements to prevent maternal deaths, and help prevent ill health and disability as a result of complications in pregnancy or childbirth. DFID's Public Service Agreement includes ambitious targets on increasing access to skilled attendance at birth. The Department's strategy includes: highlighting the issue internationally; support to countries to strengthen health systems and improve access to maternal and reproductive health services; and support for research and improved measurement and monitoring for safe motherhood. DFID is actively engaged in a new international partnership for Safe Motherhood and Newborn Health.
	We support the maternal health strategies of African countries through safe motherhood projects, for example in Kenya and Malawi, health sector budget support and, indirectly, through general budget support. We also fund international multilateral agencies and international NGOs active in supporting maternal health programmes in Africa. Since 1997 we have committed approximately £1.5 billion to support health systems. Through our participation in the High Level Forum on health we are promoting, with the WB, WHO and others, a renewed effort to accelerate progress towards all the health related MDGs.

Middle East

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the implications for the work of humanitarian aid agencies of the information bulletin being issued to foreign nationals arriving in Israel which informs them that entry to territories under the control of the Palestinian Authority is forbidden without written prior authorisation from the Israeli Government and that entry to those territories without such written authorisation may result in legal action being taken; and what representations he is making to Israel on the issue.

Hilary Benn: The Government is aware of the information bulletin, which has been issued to foreign nationals arriving in Israel, and is seriously concerned at the possible impact of such restrictions on humanitarian and other aid organisations working in the West Bank. It could seriously disrupt the supply of essential emergency provisions for the most vulnerable Palestinians. We have raised our concerns with the Israeli government and is exploring with our EU partners further avenues for doing so.

Pakistan

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many refugee camps in Pakistan are being run by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees provides full assistance (food, water, shelter, education and health care) in 13 new camps which opened after 11 September 2001. Just under 200,000 refugees reside in these new camps.
	In addition, it is estimated that there are in the region of 200 old refugee settlements in Pakistan with a population of between 900,000 and 1 million. In these camps UNHCR provides assistance with health care and education.

Rwanda and Burundi

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid is being provided to (a) Rwanda and (b) Burundi (i) for development and (ii) to re-establish its justice system; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: Establishing a fair and effective justice system in Rwanda is crucial for the stability and prosperity of the country. The most immediate challenge is to process the more than 100,000 individuals currently in Rwandan prisons accused of genocidal crimes.
	The UK Government has provided £715,000 for research into the efficiency and effectiveness of gacaca—the traditional justice system adopted by the Government of Rwanda to try those accused of genocidal crimes. This programme is managed by Penal Reform International (PRI). This financial year, the UK will also provide some £25 million to the Government of Rwanda as direct budgetary support. These funds support the implementation of Rwanda's PRSP, which highlights justice as a priority sector.
	At the request of the Government of Rwanda, the Belgian Government leads donor activity in the justice sector. Other major donors in this sector include the Dutch Government (construction of gacaca courts), the Canadian Government (the administration of the Supreme Court), the European Union (rehabilitation of the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court), and the German Government (rehabilitation of judicial systems).
	In the case of Burundi, the UK commitment in 2003–04 so far amounts to £11.62 million. Our programme consists of support to peace building and conflict resolution initiatives; and humanitarian assistance through the United Nations agencies, non-governmental organisations and other international agencies. We are also working with the Government of Burundi providing technical support and advice on their Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper and on capacity building issues. We are looking at the possibility of assistance in collaboration with others in the area of electoral reform.
	Beyond this, we have no specific plans for support to the justice sector. However, the European Commission, under their recently agreed National Indicative Programme for Burundi for the period 2003 to 2007, are developing a significant support programme in good governance including the justice sector.

Sudan

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the levels of (a) fighting and (b) casualties in Darfur; and what they were in June 2003.

Hilary Benn: There is limited access to be able to accurately assess the situation in Darfur. Our Humanitarian Adviser is planning to visit the area this week, as well as eastern Chad.
	We are very concerned about the situation in Darfur. NGOs in Chad are reporting an increase in numbers of wounded due to the aerial bombardments that are reported to have taken place. The latest UN information suggests that 600,000 people, out of a total population of about 6 million in Darfur, are currently displaced because of the conflict, with a further 90,000 refugees in Chad.
	We are pressing all sides to re-establish a ceasefire and resume peaceful negotiations, to allow unfettered humanitarian access.

Think Tanks

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the (a) value and (b) purpose was of contracts entered into by his Department with independent think tanks or their subsidiary bodies since 1997, broken down by think tank or subsidiary body.

Hilary Benn: I have placed in the House of Commons Library a list of DFID consultancy contracts with think tanks. This does not include lower value contracts, details of which are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Uganda

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Uganda Presidential Peace Team.

Hilary Benn: The Presidential Peace Team (PPT) was formed in August 2002. It comprises a number of Acholi MPs, Army Officers, Government Ministers and officials. Between August 2002 and May 2003 the PPT was involved in a number of attempts to initiate dialogue with the LRA. However these were unsuccessful.
	While the PPT still exists, our current assessment is that it is largely inactive, and therefore ineffective. A revitalised and suitably empowered PPT would be an important component of an effective strategy to end the conflict. We have stressed this in our contacts with the Government of Uganda and will continue to do so.

World Food Programme (Southern Africa)

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what shortfall exists in the World Food Programme appeal from July 2003 for food aid in southern Africa; what impact the shortfall has had on the ability to deal with the humanitarian situation in the region; and what steps are being taken to make up the shortfall.

Hilary Benn: Latest figures from the UN indicate that, so far, WFP has secured 69 per cent. of food aid requirements for this year's Consolidated Appeal for southern Africa. DFID contributions have helped ease the most pressing food shortages in key countries, notably Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The European Commission has recently announced a $25 million contribution for WFP programmes in Zimbabwe.
	DFID has been supporting the work of the Vulnerability Assessment Committees in affected countries in order to better understand needs and direct resources to them. Assessments will be carried out in Swaziland and Lesotho over the next few weeks and a fuller assessment of Mozambique's food security situation will be undertaken in March. We are awaiting the release of the urban vulnerability study, which was recently undertaken in Zimbabwe. All of these studies are being funded by DFID.
	The UN is seeking funding from a range of donors for the remainder of the Southern African Consolidated Appeal. DFID continues to be the second biggest bilateral contributor of humanitarian aid to southern Africa.

World Trade Organisation

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many people made up the UK delegation to the World Trade Organisation ministerial conference in Cancun in September; and what the cost to public funds was of its attendance.

Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply.
	There were 41 in the UK delegation to the 5th WTO Ministerial Conference held in Cancun last September.
	Final accounts for the delegation are currently not available. Once the costs have been finalised, we will inform the House.

WALES

Civil Servants

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much space, expressed in square metres, the Office occupies for the offices of civil servants in (a) central London and (b) Greater London.

Don Touhig: The Wales Office occupies 494.25 square metres in central London for the offices of civil servants. It has no office space in Greater London.

Higher Education Bill

Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, English universities will be able to charge top-up fees to students resident in Wales; and what assessment he has made of the funding shortfall if such fees are not charged.

Don Touhig: Subject to their having an access agreement with the Office for Fair Access English HEIs will be able to charge variable fees. Welsh domiciled students will be charged a variable fee on the same basis as English domiciled students.

Higher Education Bill

Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, Welsh universities will be able to charge top-up fees to students resident in (a) England and (b) Scotland; and what assessment he has made of the funding shortfall if such fees are not charged.

Don Touhig: The provisions of the Higher Education Bill transfer to the Assembly responsibility for student support for students resident in Wales and HE tuition fee levels.
	The Assembly Education and Lifelong Learning Minister has given a commitment that variable fees would not be introduced in Wales during the lifetime of the second Assembly. This means no student from England or Scotland entering a Welsh Higher Education Institution in academic year 2006–07 will be charged a variable fee, for the duration of his or her course. Funding of Higher Education Institutions in Wales is a matter for the Assembly.

Higher Education Bill

Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, students resident in England will have to pay up-front fees if attending a Welsh university; whether they will be entitled to claim bursaries while attending a Welsh university; and what assessment has been made of funding methods for such bursaries.

Don Touhig: Fee deferment is an integral part of the new package of student support for which the HE Bill provides. English domiciled students studying in Wales will be eligible for loans for fees from the Department for Education and Skills on the same basis as a English domiciles studying in England.
	Bursary provision by English HEIs will be directly connected with the terms of access plans with the Director of Fair Access which permit them to charge variable fees. The Welsh Assembly has said that it will not introduce variable fees during the lifetime of the second Assembly, therefore Welsh Higher Education Institutions will not need to provide access bursaries on similar terms to those being provided in England.

Higher Education Bill

Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, students resident in Wales will have to pay upfront fees if attending an English university; whether they will be entitled to claim bursaries while attending English universities; and what assessment he has made of funding methods for such bursaries.

Don Touhig: The Assembly has given a commitment that should tuition fee and student support powers be transferred from 2006, Welsh domiciled students studying in England will be eligible for a loan for fees and therefore will not have to pay upfront fees. It will be for English institutions to set out the details of their own bursary schemes, but we would expect these to be equally available to Welsh students.

Higher Education Bill

Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the estimated cost is of compensating universities in Wales for lost revenue if top-up fees are not charged.

Don Touhig: The Higher Education Bill will transfer to the Assembly the responsibility for student support for students resident in Wales and Higher Education tuition fee level.
	The Assembly has given a commitment that Higher Education Institutions in Wales will not be disadvantaged by not being allowed to charge variable fees in 2006–07. The Assembly will meet the costs of this commitment.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Obesity

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were recorded as obese in Northern Ireland in (a) 1985, (b) 1990, (c) 1995, (d) 2000 and (e) each year since 2001; what steps he is taking to reduce these figures; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not available.
	The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety is working with relevant departments and other agencies to tackle obesity through action plans on food and nutrition and physical activity.

Political Parties (Donations)

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his policy is on the exemption of political parties in Northern Ireland from (a) the requirement publicly to declare donations received from individuals, organisations and businesses and (b) statutory restrictions on accepting donations from foreign and anonymous sources.

John Spellar: The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (Disapplication of Part IV for Northern Ireland Parties, etc.) Order 2001 exempted the Northern Ireland political parties from the requirement to comply with Part IV of the Act for four years. Part IV imposes restrictions on the source of donations so as to prohibit foreign and anonymous donations to political parties.
	The Order expires February 2005. However, in line with a commitment made to Parliament during the passage of the Order, it is being reviewed ahead of that. The result of this review will be announced by way of a parliamentary statement.

TRANSPORT

Transport for London

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what the reasons were for the change in the level of funding by his Department for Transport for London in 2005–06 compared with 2004–05;
	(2)  what assessment he made, when allocating funds to Transport for London for (a) 2004–05, (b) 2005–06 and (c) 2006–07, of the investment required in London Underground to maintain services at their current level;
	(3)  what assessment he made, in determining his Department's funding for Transport for London in (a) 2004–05, (b) 2005–06 and (c) 2006–07, of the effect upon inward investment of (i) increasing, (ii) maintaining the existing level and (iii) decreasing the level of funding for the transport infrastructure in London.

Tony McNulty: Government funding for Transport for London in 2004–05 and 2005–06 is expected to be £2,224 million and £2,142 million respectively. These allocations are based on an assessment of London's transport priorities, taking into account affordability following the 2002 spending review. They also take account of the investment needed to deliver a 12 per cent. capacity increase for London Underground by 2012 under the PPP. This is an increase of over 85 per cent. in funding levels from the equivalent provision in 2001–02, and a significant increase in the overall amount available for investment in transport infrastructure, including an unprecedented funding commitment for London Underground, averaging more than £1 billion a year to at least 2010–11. The overall provision for 2006–07 is subject to the current spending review, which is due to be completed this summer.

Vehicle Excise Duty

David Curry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the yield from vehicle excise duty was for each local authority area in England, based on the address of the licence holder, for the most recent year for which figures are available.

Kim Howells: The net total raised from vehicle excise duty in the financial year 2002–03 was £4,825,741.000. Data based on local authority areas in England are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Aircraft (Carbon Dioxide Emissions)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect on carbon dioxide emissions from aircraft by (a) 2010, (b) 2020, (c) 2030 and (d) 2050 arising from the proposals in the Aviation White Paper.

Tony McNulty: The Department will publish a paper, "Aviation and Global Warming", in due course, which will include an analysis of the impact on emissions from the proposals in the Aviation White Paper.

Banned Airlines

David Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether airlines operating in UK airspace are banned from (a) Swiss, (b) Belgian and (c) Dutch airspace.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 22 January 2004
	I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer to the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (John Thurso), on 12 January 2004, Official Report, column 546W which describes the database we have on actions taken by other European states. I understand that some restrictions have been placed on the use of specific aircraft, but am not aware that any airlines have been prevented from operating in Swiss, Belgian or Dutch airspace.

Biofuels Directive

Gillian Shephard: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his Department's timetable is for consultation on the implementation of the EU bio-fuels directive; and what consideration has been given to ensuring that the UK's 2005 target for implementation of the directive is notified in the EU by July.

David Jamieson: The European Union's Biofuels Directive requires member states to set their own indicative targets for sales of biofuels for road transport to be met in 2005 and 2010. The Directive must be transposed by 31 December 2004. The Government will be consulting shortly on the level of possible targets for the UK and on the steps it might take to meet them. This will allow us to report our intentions to the European Commission by July 2004.

Bristol/Bath to South Coast Transport Study

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the Bristol and Bath to South Coast study will be published.

Tony McNulty: The study, which was commissioned to address the concerns of Bath and North East Somerset council and the South West Regional Assembly over the proposed detrunking of the A36/A46, has been further delayed because it has taken longer than anticipated for the consultants to complete the modelling and firm up their conclusions. However, I am pleased to be able to report that the revised final reports were cleared by the Steering Group when they met on 21 January 2004. It is anticipated that the reports will be printed at the end of January or in early February and copies will then be sent to the South West Regional Assembly for comment.
	Following receipt of the study comments from the Regional Assembly, I will be in a position to make a response.

British Airways

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what precautions his Department has advised British Airways to take concerning threats posed to its aircraft over the Middle East and Arabian sub-continents; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: holding answer 19 January 2004
	The security of UK aviation, including that of UK airline operations overseas, is kept under active review, and security measures are adjusted as and when necessary. The Government do not disclose their advice to airlines.

British Airways

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information his Department has received concerning a threat to British Airways flights from light aircraft in flight over Saudi Arabian airspace; and what representations he has made to his Saudi Arabian counterpart.

Kim Howells: holding answer 19 January 2004
	The Government keep the threat to civil aviation in all countries, including Saudi Arabia, under continuous review. We do not comment on intelligence matters, or on exchanges we may have had with foreign governments about them.

Bugaled Breizh

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions his Department has had with (a) French authorities, (b) Breton authorities, (c) the Ministry of Defence and (d) others following the sinking of the Bugaled Breizh off The Lizard on 15 January.

David Jamieson: The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) of the Department for Transport has been providing proactive support and advice to their counterparts in France—Bureau Enquêtes-Accidents Mer—since the loss of the Bugaled Breizh. During the incident, HM Coastguard at Falmouth was in regular contact with French search and rescue authorities regarding details of the stricken vessel, and maintained regular contact with them throughout the incident. Subsequently, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has provided French authorities with assistance in attempting to identify the movement of shipping within the area of the accident.
	No specific discussions have been held with Breton regional authority separately from French national authorities.
	The MAIB has been in contact with the UK Ministry of Defence with regard to the fact that the accident took place in a designated sea training exercise area.
	Discussions have also taken place between MAIB/MCA and Devon and Cornwall police and HM coroner in Truro.

Civil Servants

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much space, expressed in square metres, the Department occupies for the offices of civil servants in (a) central London and (b) Greater London.

Tony McNulty: The Department for Transport occupies 21,521m 2 in Greater London, all of which is in central London.

Consultants

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total value was of (a) technical and financial contracts, (b) technical consultants used on a call-off basis and (c) financial consultants used on a call-off basis by the section of (i) his Department and (ii) predecessor departments with responsibility for aviation, in each year since 1992.

Tony McNulty: The Department was formed on 29 May 2002. In 2002–03 and the first 9 months of 2003–04 consultancy valued at £71.19 million and £4.74 million respectively was commissioned in relation to aviation.

Consultants

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total value was of (a) technical and financial contracts, (b) technical consultants used on a call-off basis and (c) financial consultants used on a call-off basis by the section of (i) his Department and (ii) predecessor departments with responsibility for transport strategy and local transport, in each year since 1992.

Tony McNulty: The Department was formed on 29 May 2002. In 2002–03 and the first nine months of 2003–04 consultancy valued at £20.71 and £7.43 million respectively was commissioned in relation to transport strategy and local transport.

Crosswind Runway

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the impact which increased use of the crosswind runway, as outlined in the Aviation White Paper, will have on (a) noise and (b) pollution levels in (i) North Gyle, (ii) Gogarloch, (iii) Wester Broom and (iv) Broomhall areas.

Tony McNulty: Our assessment of noise and air quality impacts relating to increased use of the crosswind runway is summarised in the Scottish Consultation Document and set out in more detail in the supporting RAS 3 Study Technical Reports, which were published concurrently.
	These indicate that there would be no local air quality exceedences affecting the four locations specified, that only at Gogarloch would the increased level of noise experienced exceed 57dBA Leq16 (taken to represent the approximate onset of significant community annoyance). These impacts would be eliminated if the crosswind runway closed following the opening of a new close parallel runway.

Edinburgh Airport

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what compensation will be made available to those residents living close to Edinburgh airport who face a loss in their property value in advance of the proposed construction of a second runway as outlined in the Aviation White Paper;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the statutory blight provisions that will be available to residents living (a) close to and (b) affected by the planned expansion of Edinburgh airport as outlined in the Aviation White Paper.

Tony McNulty: The White Paper recommends that people should have access to some form of redress at beyond the current statutory provisions, for example to help them relocate before any development takes place. Arrangements are being made for non-statutory schemes to be brought forward locally by the airports operators.

Edinburgh Airport

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment was made of the case for protection of the ancient Catstane site north of the existing Edinburgh airport runway in the formulation of the proposals for a second runway as outlined in the Aviation White Paper; and for what reason no mention was made of the site in the White Paper.

Tony McNulty: Carlowrie Cat Stane is one of a number of Scheduled Ancient Monuments in the vicinity of Edinburgh Airport that were identified in the optioneering and appraisal studies that underpinned the Scottish Consultation Document. The Cat Stane was taken into account, alongside a range of other factors, in the design and appraisal of the options for a new runway at Edinburgh and the development of White Paper policy. The ancient monument would ultimately lie between a new runway and the existing one and is therefore unlikely to be affected by development. The necessary protection of the Cat Stane will be addressed in the master plan for the airport and any future planning application for the development of a new runway.

IT Contracts

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list information technology contracts in his Department with a value of above £20 million in each of the last 10 years; what the inception date for each system was; when it became fully functional; when it became fully debugged; and what the cost of over-runs has been.

Tony McNulty: The Department for Transport was formed in May 2002. The Department has let no contracts that meet the description.

Light Rail Schemes

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what light rail schemes will be built by 2010; what their expected cost is; and what their (a) construction start date and (b) completion dates are.

Tony McNulty: Sunderland Direct opened in 2002 and Nottingham Express Transit is due to open in March 2004. A number of other light rail schemes are being considered and are in various stages of appraisal, assessment and procurement.

Local Authority Transport Projects

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the measures the Department is taking to enable local authorities to bring forward and implement projects given provisional approval within the last three years' annual transport settlements.

Tony McNulty: The Department, through the Government Offices hold regular meetings with local authorities providing advice on funding issues, statutory processes, etc. Working closely with local authorities the Government Offices make sure scheme changes are reported promptly so that decisions on how to proceed can be taken at the earliest opportunity.

Local Authority Transport Projects

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many local authority projects given provisional approval within the last three years' annual transport settlements are delayed owing to (a) skills shortages and (b) the planning process.

Tony McNulty: No local authority has identified skills shortages to the Department as a primary cause of delays to major local transport schemes since the introduction of the Local Transport Plan process.
	The planning process has been identified as a contributory cause of delay to several major scheme proposals, but the effects of factors such as delayed planning permissions and delayed TWA approvals cannot be clearly separated from other factors.

Management Consultants

Howard Flight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to his Department of using management consultants has been in each of the last five years.

Tony McNulty: The Department was formed in May 2002. The Department spent £122.2 million in 2002–03 and £42.1 million in the period 1 April 2003 to 31 December 2003 on all types of consultancy excluding research. Separate figures for management consultancy are not held centrally.

Rail Freight

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in the rail freight gauge and capacity enhancements (a) Felixstowe to Nuneaton (Phase 2), (b) Southampton to West Coast Mainline (Gauge), (c) north London and Great Eastern Freight Works, (d) West Midland Freight Works, (e) re-opening Portishead line for freight and new line to port, (f) Transpennine/South Humberside freight capacity works and (g) for freight services to Royal Portbury Docks, Bristol.

Tony McNulty: Progress is as follows:
	(a) Physical works between Felixstowe and Ipswich have been completed. A study commissioned by Network Rail for the Ipswich-Peterborough work has been completed.
	(b) Detailed structure surveys are being undertaken.
	(c) Gauge enhancement through the Ipswich Tunnel is programmed to take place this summer. Options to improve cross-London capacity are being evaluated.
	(d) The Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) are considering whether work to provide additional capacity for freight can be carried out in conjunction with the routine re-signalling schemes proposed by Network Rail for the Saltley signal box area and at Stourbridge.
	(e) The Portishead line has been re-opened and the new line to the port has been opened.
	(f) Network Rail are considering the requirements and will report the cost estimates to the SRA in the spring.
	(g) Freight services to the docks are now operating.

Rail Freight

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many freight access grants have been made in the last 12 months; and what the total sum paid was.

Tony McNulty: The Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) has not awarded any new Track Access Grants (TAGs) in the last 12 months, three existing grants had their contracts extended. Records of the amount paid through TAGs are held by financial years. Since April 2003 £14.2 million has been paid by the SRA in TAGs. Payments for previous years are reported in the SRA's Annual Reports, copies of which are available in the Library of the House.

Rail Freight

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he was consulted before the Strategic Rail Authority introduced its moratorium on freight access grants.

Tony McNulty: Yes.

Rail Infrastructure Asset Register

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress is being made by Network Rail to establish a comprehensive asset register of the rail infrastructure; what that register includes; and when it will be completed.

Tony McNulty: Since April 2001, when the Rail Regulator modified Railtrack's network licence to require the company to establish and maintain an asset register, the company has thoroughly reviewed the state of its asset knowledge, established the key principles of how its asset information strategy needs to improve its business planning processes and developed detailed plans to meet these business needs. Good progress is being made, and Network Rail is continuing to press ahead with the implementation of these plans.
	Development of the asset register comprises a number of key elements. It is replacing many old databases with new systems that will provide access to integrated and consistent, company-wide data for the first time. In some cases, existing data systems can be maintained, but they are being overhauled to ensure that data are accurate and fully up to date.
	Much of this work is highly detailed and requires a painstaking review of large volumes of data. Inevitably, this is time consuming, but good progress is being made. Some elements of the project are complete, while others, such as the new system for managing maintenance work known as MIMS 1 , are well developed and in the course of introduction. It is expected that MIMS will be fully implemented by April 2004.
	As the asset register is being completed, new data collection and storage systems are being implemented, requiring significant changes to the culture of data management within Network Rail. Development will continue to take effect for many years, but it is expected that a fundamental milestone will be the completion of a baseline asset inventory which will contain accurate and fully up-to-date information about the key attributes of the network assets by mid-2005.
	1 Mincom Information Management System—initially developed for use in the mining industry.

Rail Network (Repair and Maintenance)

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if he will publish provisional findings from the comprehensive asset register on the cost of the backlog of repair and maintenance work on the rail network;
	(2)  if he will set a target date to remove the backlog of maintenance and renewal work to achieve steady-state condition.

Tony McNulty: The purpose of the asset register is to ensure that Network Rail has appropriate knowledge of the condition, capability and capacity of the network assets. As its development continues, the asset register will introduce new techniques and better quality asset information that will enhance Network Rail's understanding of the age, use and behaviour of individual assets in service, so that it can improve:
	(a) its planning for the appropriate maintenance and repair interventions;
	(b) the accuracy of long-term predictive modelling of maintenance and renewal interventions; and
	(c) the management and monitoring of actual performance against planned activities, and the costs of those activities.
	Work to develop these long-term planning tools is still in progress but, in their early stages, they provided important input to the Rail Regulator's review of access charges during 2003—particularly in respect of track renewals.
	The Regulator's conclusions, published on 12 December 2003, provide for increased levels of funding for infrastructure maintenance and renewals. It is now for Network Rail to respond by increasing its activities in accordance with the scope and priorities of work that it determines in response to the Regulator's review.

Recruitment Advertising

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much has been spent on recruitment advertisements in the press, broken down by publication, by (a) his Department, (b) quangos under the Department and (c) non-departmental Government bodies under the Department (i) in the last year and (ii) since the Department's creation.

Tony McNulty: The Department for Transport was formed in May 2002. The Department uses the most appropriate publication for recruitment advertising, be it national, regional, trade magazine or website, depending on the nature of the vacancy.
	The following are details of the costs incurred by DfT (Central) for recruitment advertising.
	2002–03: £241,868.87
	2003–04 to date: £349,117.32.
	This does not include the Department's Agencies and NDPBs as they have responsibility for their own recruitment below the Senior Civil Service.

Royal Train

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the future of the royal train.

Tony McNulty: Last year, the royal household completed a review on the future of the royal train. The review concluded that the royal train should continue to be used as an integral part of royal travel but that the household and the Department should actively monitor costs to ensure that it is operated and maintained in the most cost effective manner.

Security Passes

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many security passes have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen by staff in (i) his Department and (ii) departmental agencies in the last 12 months.

Tony McNulty: The number of permanent passes in the Department for Transport reported in the last 12 months as lost totals 71. A further two were reported as stolen. In the same period 147 Agency passes were lost and two stolen. A large number of the Department's access control systems are electronic and have the facility to invalidate a pass as soon as it is reported to have been lost. In areas where access is given on visual inspection of a pass, any increased threat that results from the loss of such a pass is assessed and appropriate action is taken.

Security Passes

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many security passes have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen by staff in his Department in the last 12 months.

Tony McNulty: The number of permanent passes in the Department for Transport reported in the last 12 months as lost totals 71. A further two were reported as stolen. A large number of the Department's access control systems are electronic and have the facility to invalidate a pass as soon as it is reported to have been lost. In areas where access is given on visual inspection of a pass any increased threat that results from the loss of such a pass is assessed and appropriate action is taken.

Ships (Dangerous Cargoes)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the occasions since 1975 when ships have lost dangerous cargoes overboard in (a) United Kingdom waters, (b) the English Channel and (c) the North Sea; what cargo was lost in each case; and what was subsequently recovered.

David Jamieson: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency uses data provided by the Advisory Committee on Protection of the Sea (ACOPS) and information is not available in the form requested. However, Coastguard experience suggests that there are around five or six such incidents per year in UK waters. In 2001, for example, the Agency is aware of five incidents in UK waters. There were none in the English Channel and four in the North Sea. In 2002, the Agency is aware of five incidents in UK waters, including one in the English Channel and three in the North Sea.
	The majority of the incidents in 2001 and 2002 involved chemical drums/containers washed up on beaches. In cases such as this, he local authority and/or Fire Brigade have arranged for safe disposal.

Station Improvements

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the Strategic Rail Authority will set new targets to achieve its earlier target of delivering £370 million improvements to 1,000 stations by 2004.

Tony McNulty: The current programme for providing new facilities under the Modern Facilities at Stations Scheme (MFAS) covers 68 stations. Work on these is scheduled for completion by 31 March 2005. Any extension of the scheme will depend on the availability of future funding following the Government's Spending Review later this year.

Statutory Sick Pay

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people employed in his Department have claimed statutory sick pay for (a) less than one week, (b) one to three weeks, (c) four to six weeks, (d) seven to 12 weeks, (e) 13 to 20 weeks and (f) 21 to 28 weeks in each year since 1997.

Tony McNulty: The Department for Transport was established following machinery of Government changes in May 2002. The first complete year for which we have data on staff sick absence rates for staff in the centre of the Department for Transport is January to December 2003. During this period, the number of people taking sick leave was as follows:
	
		
			 Days Number 
		
		
			  
			 (a) Four to seven 292 
			 (b) Eight to 21 137 
			 (c) 22 to 42 37 
			 (d) 43 to 72 17 
			 (e) 73 to 140 16 
			 (f) 141 to 196 6 
		
	
	The Department is committed to managing sick absence effectively.

US Security (Passenger Screening)

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what liaison his Department has had with the United States Department of Homeland Security over the Computer-Assisted Passenger Pre-Screening System, Version 2 (CAPPS-11).

Tony McNulty: The Department liaises closely with United States authorities on aviation security measures, and is aware in that context of the development of the CAPPS2 system.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Sports Activities (Children)

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the average time spent on all sports by those aged between six and 16 years was in terms of hours per week in each year since 1997.

Richard Caborn: The information requested is not collected in this format. Taking into account time spent per week on curriculum PE, outside lessons in term time and during the previous summer holidays, the results of Sport England's Young People and Sport National Surveys suggested that, on average, young people spent eight hours 23 minutes a week on sport and physical activity in 1999 and that this had decreased to eight hours 12 minutes a week by 2002. Data are now being collected for the first time—for publication in April—on the percentage of school children who spend a minimum of two hours each week on high-quality PE and school sport within and beyond the curriculum.

Cinema

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her Department's policy is on the recognition of cinema as a cultural and regenerative opportunity in unitary development plans.

Estelle Morris: The UK Film Council's network of Regional Screen Agencies (RSAs) work with key local authorities to position film within cultural plans, and to emphasise the value of cinema as a cultural and regenerative opportunity in unitary development plans.
	A number of RSAs are also developing, with local authorities, proposals around cinema exhibition in rural and market towns. This research will emphasise the effects which a working cinema can have on a range of social, cultural and economic issues. The UK Film Council, in partnership with the British Film Institute (BFI) and the RSAs, is currently carrying out research into the social and economic impact of town centre cinemas which is expected to back up the work of RSAs with local authorities.

Civil Servants

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many civil servants, broken down by grade, there are in the Department and the agencies for which the Department is responsible; and what the figures were in January 1997.

Richard Caborn: The following table shows the numbers of individual civil servants employed by DCMS and the Royal Parks Agency.
	
		
			  1 April 1997(6) 1 January 2004 
		
		
			 DCMS   
			 SCS 22 25 
			 A 61 85 
			 B 101 146 
			 C 64 115 
			 D 104 104 
			 Total 352 475 
			
			 The Royal Parks   
			 A 5 8 
			 B 15 23 
			 C 25 30 
			 D 19 23 
			 SCS 1 2 
			 Commander 1 0 
			 Superintendent 1 1 
			 Chief Inspector 0 1 
			 Inspector 7 6 
			 Police Sergeant 13 18 
			 Police Constable 139 116 
			 Horse Manager 1 0 
			 Total 227 228 
		
	
	(6) Data for January 1997 are not available.

Civil Servants

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much space, expressed in square metres, the Department occupies for the offices of civil servants in (a) central London and (b) Greater London.

Richard Caborn: DCMS occupies five buildings/part buildings in central London. The space in occupation amounts to 10,557.94 square metres net usable area. There are no buildings occupied in the Greater London Area.

Commercial Radio Stations

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the use of the Radio Joint Audience Research system of audience measurement to calculate the amount of levy on the qualifying revenues of national commercial radio stations;
	(2)  if she will adopt a system of electronic audience measurement to calculate the amount of levy on the qualifying revenue of national commercial radio stations;
	(3)  what assessment she has made of the effect on revenue from the levy on qualifying revenues of national commercial radio stations of moving from the Radio Joint Audience Research system of audience measurement to a system of electronic audience measurement.

Estelle Morris: None. The calculation of qualifying revenue is a matter for Ofcom acting in accordance with the provisions of the Broadcasting Act 1990. Ofcom (formerly the Radio Authority) is required to draw up and from time to time review a statement setting out the principles to be followed in calculating qualifying revenue. Before doing so, Ofcom must consult the Secretary of State and the Treasury. This statement was last reviewed in November 1995. I understand there are currently no plans for further revisions.

Commercial Radio Stations

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will ask Ofcom to conduct a study into the accuracy of the Radio Joint Audience Research system of audience measurement.

Estelle Morris: No. The accuracy of audience is a matter for the industry. I understand that RAJAR are conducting extensive research into the merits of electronic measurement devices.

Film Distribution

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what steps her Department is taking to help independent film distributors to compete with (a) mainstream products and (b) products distributed from Hollywood studios;
	(2)  what steps her Department is taking to broaden the audience base at cinemas;
	(3)  what steps her Department is taking to support the independent distribution sector in making available more prints of independent films;
	(4)  what steps her Department is taking to create incentives for exhibitors to show more independent films.

Estelle Morris: The UK Film Council, the Government's strategic agency for film, has recently announced a comprehensive Distribution and Exhibition Strategy costing £24 million over the next three years aimed at widening audiences for film and ensuring a broader and more diverse range of films is available.
	£14 million of this funding will be allocated, in partnership with the Arts Council of England, to a Digital Screen Network which will enable the exhibition of a wider range of films, through the provision of equipment enabling the digital exhibition of films.
	The strategy also includes a Specialised Print and Advertising (P&A) Fund, with £1 million per annum over the next three years, to assist distributors to widen the availability of films defined as "specialised". These are films characterised by an innovative cinematic style, or which engage with challenging subject matter, offering audiences a different experience of cinema from that provided by mainstream US studio-originated material. Support will be available under this fund to enable a distributor to increase the print run and media investment (P&A) for specialised films.
	The £1 million UK Film Distribution Programme is another strand of the strategy which is aimed at assisting distributors to increase the theatrical release of indigenous UK films that are aimed at a wide, commercial market.

Heritage Lottery Funding

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Heritage Lottery funding has been awarded to Brent in each year since 1997.

Estelle Morris: Heritage Lottery Fund commitments made for the Brent Local Authority Area by financial year are as follows:
	
		
			 Financial year £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 9,900 
			 1998–99 Nil 
			 1999–2000 Nil 
			 2000–2001 184,600 
			 2001–2002 912,000 
			 2002–2003 1,099,400

Heritage Lottery Funding

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Heritage Lottery funding has been awarded on average to London boroughs in each year since 1997.

Estelle Morris: The figures are in the table.
	
		
			 Financial year £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 3,038,537 
			 1998–99 1,616,752 
			 1999–2000 351,044 
			 2000–01 1,302,294 
			 2001–02 1,260,987 
			 2002–03 1,561,673 
		
	
	The figures include funding for National Museums and Galleries.

Imperial War Museum North

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to visit the Imperial War Museum North seminar on Nuclear Weapons Past and Future to be held on 11 February.

Estelle Morris: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport has not received an invitation to this seminar.

National Lottery

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the total value is of Lottery revenue used to support Government-sponsored projects within her Department since 1997.

Estelle Morris: One of the central strengths of the Lottery is its ability to harness other sources of funding, from the private, public and the not-for-profit sectors.
	143,000 Lottery awards have been made since 1997. The cost of identifying which related to Government-sponsored projects would be disproportionate.

Michele Verroken

Nick Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to re-appoint Michele Verroken to a position dealing with the campaigns against the misuse of drugs in sport in the United Kingdom.

Richard Caborn: Michelle Verroken's contract of employment with UK Sport has not at this stage been terminated. It would therefore, be inappropriate to make any further comment at this time.

Ministerial Visits

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what ministerial visits she has planned for the next six months.

Tessa Jowell: Over the next six months I have to date the following ministerial visits planned:
	
		
			 Venue Purpose of meeting 
		
		
			 Liverpool To attend the LGA Conference 
			 Bradford To meet Bradford city council 
			 Berlin To have a bilateral meeting with the German Culture Minister and will attend the Treptow event 
			 Harrow Visit to Headstone Manor and Ladbroke Racing HQ. 
			 India To lead a British film delegation to the Frames film and entertainment festival 
			 Nottingham to attend the National Sports Development seminar 
			 N Ireland To attend Sports Cabinet 
			 Cyprus To visit the BOA training camp in advance of the Olympic games 
			 Birmingham BBC Charter Review Consultation 
			 Leicester BBC Charter Review Consultation 
			 York BBC Charter Review Consultation 
			 Barbican LSO event 
			 Tate Modern Terry Frost exhibition 
			 ENO Reopening 
			 Photographers Gallery Citigroup Photograph Prize 
			 Royal Festival Hall Concert 
			 Highbury Football match

Queen (Diamond Jubilee)

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what preparations the Government is making to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in 2012;
	(2)  if she will make a statement on plans for celebrating Her Majesty's Diamond Jubilee.

Richard Caborn: It is too early to consider the celebrations that will mark Her Majesty the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. At an appropriate time the Government will begin discussions with the Palace as to the nature of these celebrations and the necessary preparations will be made.

Royal Family

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the extent to which the royal family features in material to promote tourism in Britain.

Richard Caborn: Britain's royal heritage plays an important role in VisitBritain's work to promote Britain overseas as a tourism destination. Many of the publications and campaign materials produced by VisitBritain feature occupied Royal Palaces as well as historic buildings and castles with links to the monarchy. To celebrate the Golden Jubilee in 2002, VisitBritain published a map of 'Britain's Royal Heritage' featuring a foreword by HRH the Prince of Wales. In addition members of the royal family have supported the tourism industry through visits to VisitBritain's overseas offices and other promotional events such as Royal Tourism Day in June last year

Sports Expenditure

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how the funds allocated to Step into Sport have been spent; and how many volunteers have been recruited.

Richard Caborn: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Home Office jointly allocated £7 million to Step into Sport, enabling roll-out from April 2002 to 200 school sport partnerships. By summer 2004 it is expected that some 50,000 young people will have taken sports leaders awards of which 1) some 20,000 will have helped run festivals of sport for primary schools and 2) some 4,000 will have been supported to begin volunteering in local sports clubs. In addition Sport England is supporting 16 national governing bodies of sport and all 45 county sports partnerships to develop and implement volunteer support strategies.

Sports Expenditure

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2003, Official Report, columns 166–67W, on sports expenditure, if she will break down by funding block the £103.5 million spent by her Department on sport in 2003.

Richard Caborn: The £103.5 million is analysed as follows.
	
		Outturn figures for 2002–03 -- £
		
			 Sport Spend 
		
		
			 Children's Play 498,000 
			 Commonwealth Games Ceremonies 8,301,000 
			 Step into Sport 2,271,000 
			 Other Support and Subsidy 1,094,000 
			 Football Licensing Authority Grant in Aid 955,000 
			 Sport England Grant in Aid 80,324,000 
			 Space for Sports and Arts 10,100,000 
			   
			 Total 103,543,000 
		
	
	Sport England's Grant in Aid includes a £28 million allocation of funding to support Manchester Commonwealth Games.

Sportsmatch Scheme

Nick Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to provide further support to the Sportsmatch scheme.

Richard Caborn: The Sportsmatch scheme is funded by Sport England, which confirms that the present level of funding will be maintained until 2005–06. Sportsmatch will receive £3.675 million in each of the financial years 2003–04, 2004–05 and 2005–06. The level of funding for future years will be reviewed by the Department and Sport England well in advance of the end of the present funding arrangements.

Sub-regional Television Stations

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to discuss with the BBC during the review of its Charter the development of sub-regional television stations.

Tessa Jowell: holding answer 19 January 2004
	Charter review is an open and transparent process, characterised by extensive public consultation and debate. The process is at an early stage and the review will cover the full range of the BBC's activities.

Tourism

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to visit domestic tourist attractions (a) in and (b) outside London.

Tessa Jowell: During the next few months I have to date plans to visit the following domestic tourist attractions:
	(a) In London:
	Barbican—LSO centenary event
	ENO—attend the re-opening
	Donmar Warehouse—The Dark
	Royal Festival Hall—Britten's Serenade for Horns and strings and Mahler 6
	Highbury—Arsenal football match
	Tate Modern—Terry Frost exhibition
	London—Flora Marathon
	Harrow West—Headstone Manor
	(b) Outside London she plans to visit:
	Cornwall—Eden Project and Royal Cornwall Museum
	Cheltenham—Cheltenham Races
	Cardiff—Millennium Stadium, FA Cup final
	Twickenham—6 Nations rugby match
	Silverstone—British Grand Prix
	Royal Troon—British Open Golf
	York—Heritage sites

UK Rowing

Nick Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what additional funding the Government will provide for UK rowing, to enable the UK to host the (a) 2005 Rowing World Cup and (b) 2006 Rowing World Championships.

Richard Caborn: UK Sport is working closely with the Amateur Rowing Association on its application for funding for the 2005 Rowing World Cup, with the aim of submitting it to the Major Events Steering Group in April before further consideration by the UK Sports Council.
	UK Sport has already made a grant under the Major Events Programme to the Association of £1,150,000 towards staging the 2006 World Championships.

UK Sport

Nick Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to appoint a new long-term full-time chairman of UK Sport.

Richard Caborn: The interim chair of UK Sport, Sue Campbell, was appointed in September 2003 for up to 18 months and we do not expect to appoint a permanent chair until her term of office expires.

MINISTER FOR WOMEN

Equal Pay

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Minister for Women what the Government's policy is on transparency of remuneration in relation to equal pay; and what plans the Government have to achieve equal pay for men and women performing the same job description where women are paid less than their male counterparts.

Jacqui Smith: The Government are taking the issue of transparency of pay seriously. We believe that secrecy can perpetuate the gender pay gap. Employers must ensure that pay systems and practices do not lead to pay inequalities between men and women. This is particularly important with discretionary performance pay and bonuses. We have introduced the equal pay questionnaire to help people who think they have an equal pay problem find out from their employers whether this is the case. We believe that carrying out an equal pay review should be good business practice for every employer and have developed a number of initiatives to help them, including funding the Equal Opportunities Commission to develop equal pay toolkits. We are working in partnership with business, trade unions, the EOC and Opportunity Now to ensure that 35 per cent. of large employers have done pay reviews by 2006. We are also improving the way the Equal Pay Act works in practice and will be consulting shortly on proposals to speed up and simplify complex equal value cases.

Sex Discrimination Act

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Minister for Women what plans she has to bring forward amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act to introduce a public duty to promote gender equality.

Patricia Hewitt: The Government are taking forward a significant legislative agenda on equality matters, and they have committed themselves to introduce a duty on public bodies to promote equality of opportunity for women and men generally when parliamentary time allows.

PRIME MINISTER

Prisoners (Egypt)

David Amess: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his oral answer of 21 January 2004, Official Report, column 1321, if he will (a) meet the relatives of the three detainees held in a Cairo prison and (b) make representations to President Mubarak on the case being adjourned twice.

Tony Blair: As I explained to the hon. Member at Prime Minister's Questions, I am fully aware of the circumstances of this case and understand the disappointment of the men's relatives that the case has been adjourned again.
	The UK Ambassador in Cairo has raised our concerns about the case with the Egyptian Foreign Minister on 15 January, one of many representations we have made to the Egyptian authorities. Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers have also met the men's families on four occasions.
	As the Department which leads on consular cases overseas, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers should continue to make representations to the Egyptian Government where appropriate and maintain contact with the men's families.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Advertising Expenditure

Alan Duncan: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the total expenditure on (a) information campaigns and (b) advertising was for the Lord Chancellor's Department in each year since 1997.

David Lammy: The information is listed in the following table.
	Over the period in question, the Lord Chancellor's Department spent £4,179,300 on one information campaign in 2000–01, of which £1,347,600 was spent on advertising. The purpose of this campaign was to raise public awareness of the Community Legal Service, set up in April 2000, to provide legal advice and guidance to the public.
	Since it became the Department of Constitutional Affairs in June 2003, my Department has also run a campaign to recruit more people from under-represented groups and younger people to the magistracy. The total expenditure to date on this campaign has been £207,000 on regional bus, radio and press advertising.
	
		£
		
			 Financial year May-March (a) Expenditure on information campaigns (b) Expenditure on advertising  
		
		
			 1997–98   
			 LCD 0 0 
			 Court Service 0 0 
			 Public Trust Office 0 0 
			
			 1998–99   
			 LCD 0 0 
			 Court Service 0 0 
			 Public Trust Office 0 0 
			
			 1999–2000   
			 LCD 0 0 
			 Court Service 0 0 
			 Public Trust Office 0 0 
			
			 2000–01   
			 LCD 4,179,300 1,347,600 
			 Court Service 0 0 
			 Public Trust Office 0 0 
			 2001–02   
			 LCD 0 0 
			 Court Service 0 0 
			 PGO(7) 0 0 
			
			 2002-June 2003   
			 DCA(8) 0 207,000 
			 Court Service 0 0 
			 PGO 0 0 
		
	
	(7) The Public Guardianship Office replaced PTO in April 2003.
	(8) The Department for Constitutional Affairs replaced LCD on June 2003.

Advertising Expenditure

Alan Duncan: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the total expenditure on (a) information campaigns and (b) advertising was for his Department since its creation.

David Lammy: Since it was set up on 12 June 2003, my Department has (a) spent £207,000 on one information campaign to encourage more people from under-represented groups and younger people to become magistrates.
	(b) This information campaign has only comprised advertising, of which the expenditure to date is:
	£176,000 for regional bus adverts;
	£27,000 for press adverts;
	£4,000 for radio advertising.

Legal Finance

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will list the QCs who received the highest overall payments (a) from the Community Legal Service budget and (b) from the Criminal Defence Service budget in 2002–03.

David Lammy: The highest total payments made directly from the Community Legal Service fund during 2002–03 were to Lord Brennan QC. Lord Brennan received £606,000 to the nearest thousand.
	The highest value of aggregated payments made from the Criminal Defence Service budget during 2002–03 were to Mr James Sturman QC. Mr Sturman received in the region of £620,000.
	Care should be taken not to misinterpret these payments as an indication of annual earnings for work carried out in the year for the following reasons:
	Payments made during any financial year will include payments for work carried out before the start of the year, and will include payments for cases which started and concluded over several years.
	Payments received during any financial year do not necessarily mean that they were paid for work carried out at the rank of QC. Barristers may be paid directly by an instructing solicitor as part a solicitors disbursement.
	The figures quoted above are gross payments and are inclusive of VAT, and may include payments on account where applicable as well as travel and hotel expenses incurred.

Magistrates Courts

Chris Ruane: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will list the magistrate benches that (a) do and (b) do not co-operate in joint police, local authority and magistrate courts training.

Christopher Leslie: There is no central data collected on the information requested. It is a matter for each MCC whether joint training and other events take place in co-operation with local authorities and the police. In making these decisions MCCs will also take regard to the need to protect the judicial independence of the magistracy. Local Criminal Justice Boards (LCJB) are the forum through which such co-operation may be discussed and agreed. For example, we know of an LCJB which has been instrumental in developing a protocol on anti-social behaviour order matters which is used by all criminal justice service agencies.
	LCJBs are run under a tripartite arrangement involving the Home Office, my Department and the Crown Prosecution Service and seek to include the chief officers from the Police, the Probation Service, Crown Prosecution Service, Crown and Magistrates' Courts, the Prison Service, and Youth Offending Teams. Magistrates' Courts are not represented by magistrates, but the Justices Chief Executive (JCE) does attend as the senior official from the local MCC on their behalf. The JCE has overall responsibility for ensuring that appropriate training is planned and delivered to magistrates and can direct as necessary on issues arising from LCJBs.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will report on the work of the Special Rapporteur of the UN Commission on Human Rights in relation to Afghanistan.

Mike O'Brien: Kamal Hossain, the Special Rapporteur, in accordance with Commission on Human Rights resolution 2002/19, visited Afghanistan three times in 2002. His last, ninth report, issued on 13 January 2003, focused on the impact on human rights of Afghanistan's transitional process started by the Bonn Agreement of December 2001.
	There has been progress on a range of human rights issues since the Special Rapporteur's last report. Most recently, Articles 5, 7 and 58 of the new constitution, agreed on 4 January 2004, oblige the Afghan State to protect human rights, ensure unity and equality among all ethnic groups, abide by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and establish an Independent Human Rights Commission to promote the advancement and protection of human rights. Chapter Two of the constitution has 38 Articles covering the Fundamental Rights and Duties of Citizens. These include Articles 22 and 43 which establish equal rights for all Afghans (both men and women), including access to free education up to degree level; and Article 34 which states that freedom of expression is inviolable.
	The Afghan Transitional Administration and international community are committed to providing the security and resources needed to support implementation of the new constitution, and to develop effective mechanisms to tackle continuing human rights violations and abuses, including those against women.

Afghanistan

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the progress by the UN and Afghan Transitional Authority on measures concerning Afghan women and girls set out in Economic and Social Council Resolution 2002–04.

Mike O'Brien: Since Resolution 2002–04 there have been a number of significant developments affecting women and girls in Afghanistan.
	On 5 March 2003, Afghanistan publicly demonstrated its intention to restore full and equal rights for women by ratifying the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. In the same month, the EU sponsored a resolution on Afghanistan at the Commission on the Status of Women, welcoming the progress that Afghanistan has made to improve the situation for women and urging the Afghan Transitional Administration (ATA) to ensure that a legal framework, protecting women's rights, was put in place.
	The Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on violence against women, submitted her report on the situation of women and girls in Afghanistan in October 2003. Many of the recommendations requiring action by the ATA were reflected in the new Afghan Constitution, agreed on 4 January 2004. 23 per cent. of the delegates to the Constitutional Loya Jirga were women from across Afghanistan. Articles 22, 43 and 44 of the new Constitution establish women's equal rights, including access to education; and place an obligation on the Afghan State to develop education programmes for women. By March 2003, the number of children attending the first day of school rose to 4.2 million: 37 per cent. of the students are girls, and a third of the teachers are women.
	In late 2003, the UN appointed Luntan Bayarmaa as the Gender Adviser in the Office of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the political parties registered in Afghanistan.

Mike O'Brien: According to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), no political parties have yet been registered in Afghanistan.

Saudi Arabia

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action was taken by his Department as a result of the threat that light aircraft posed to British Airways planes in Saudi Arabia.

Jack Straw: We are not able to comment on specific threats but I can assure the right hon. Gentlemen that we take very seriously every threat to aviation and take appropriate action, in coordination with the Department for Transport, airlines and, as necessary, the security and intelligence agencies and foreign governments.

British Indian Ocean Territory

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will assess the feasibility of resettling the population to those parts of British Indian Ocean Territory permitted to Chagossians under the Immigration Ordinance (British Indian Ocean Territory) dated 3 November 2002.

Bill Rammell: A study by independent experts into the feasibility of resettlement of the Chagos islands was commissioned in April 2000. The report on the first phase of the study was completed in June 2000 and the report on the second phase, which incorporated findings from the first, was completed in June 2002. Copies of these reports are in the Library of the House.
	The study concluded that short-term habitation for limited numbers would be possible but only on a subsistence basis while any long-term settlement would be precarious and costly. No final decisions have been taken on any further phase of this feasibility study.

British Indian Ocean Territory

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a list of actions taken since July 2002 to support the Chagossians.

Bill Rammell: No specific measures in support of the Chagossian community have been taken since July 2002. But we continue to be in contact with the leaders and representatives of the community about the concerns that they have.

China

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on relations between China and the UK.

Bill Rammell: We currently enjoy good relations with China. These have been built on regular high level visits in both directions, as well as lower level exchanges on many different issues.
	As part of our efforts to increase collaboration between the UK and China, a Task Force was set up in September 2003 under my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister's leadership in order to make firm recommendations for action. Work is progressing and we hope to announce these in late spring.
	We have welcomed China's support in the fight against terrorism and have encouraged her to engage constructively in international fora.
	We do, nevertheless, continue to raise with the Chinese authorities areas where we disagree, such as Human Rights.

Cyprus

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his European Union counterparts on the future of Cyprus and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: I frequently discuss the future of Cyprus with my European colleagues. We all agree on the desirability of an early settlement of the Cyprus problem so that a united island can join the EU on 1 May. This remains the Government's objective.

Cyprus

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of prospects for an agreement between Greece and Turkey on the issue of the future sovereignty of Cyprus when the island accedes to the European Union on 1 May and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: The Government continue to believe that a settlement to the Cyprus problem is achievable by 1 May. But this will only be possible if all sides meet the requirements set down by the UNSG in April last year, and make a full and clear commitment to reach a settlement on the basis of the UNSG's proposals. Current indications give some cause for optimism. I was impressed during my recent visit to Turkey by the Turkish Government's determination to work for an early settlement.

Cyprus

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the role of the latest UN plan for the sovereignty of Cyprus in achieving an agreement between Greece and Turkey and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: The Government believe that the UNSG's proposals are the only basis for a just, lasting and comprehensive settlement to the Cyprus problem. The proposals are the product of involvement by the UN over many years. I can see no other solution that can adequately satisfy the legitimate concerns of all sides (including Greece and Turkey) on the island's future.

Cyprus

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last met the (a) Turkish ambassador and (b) Greek ambassador to discuss the future of Cyprus.

Denis MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met the Greek Foreign Minister on 22 January 2004. The Greek ambassador was present. The Foreign Secretary has not had a substantive meeting with the Turkish ambassador so far this year. But we are in very close contact with the Turkish embassy, and with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara. I met the Turkish ambassador on 21 January. The future of Cyprus was one of the main topics of discussion in all of these meetings.

Cyprus

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what priorities he has set for assisting in negotiations aimed at achieving an agreement between Greece and Turkey on the sovereignty of Cyprus.

Denis MacShane: Our first priority regarding Cyprus is to work for a just, lasting and comprehensive settlement. We believe the best, and only realistic, way of achieving this is through the continued efforts of the United Nations. We are actively encouraging all sides to meet the UN Secretary General's requirements for an early resumption of negotiations based on the UNSG's proposals, so that a united Cyprus can join the EU on 1 May 2004.

Departmental Properties

John Maples: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list residential properties sold by his Department since June 1997, and the net cash proceeds of each.

Bill Rammell: Since June 1997 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has sold the following residential accommodation:
	
		
			 Head of post residences Staff accommodation Properties 
			  
		
		
			 1997–98   
			 Paris OECD — 1 
			 Zurich — 1 
			  Bogota 1 Flat 
			  Buenos Aires 1 Flat 
			  Canberra 1 House 
			  Capetown 1 House 
			  Geneva 1 House 
			  Georgetown 1 House 
			  Harare 1 House 
			  Helsinki 2 Houses, 1 Flat 
			  Johannesburg 1 House 
			  Lusaka 4 House 
			  Madrid 1 Flat 
			  Maputo 1 House 
			  Maseru 2 Houses 
			  Paris 7 Flats 
			  Pretoria 1 House 
			  Reykjavik 1 House 
			  The Hague 2 Flats 
			  Tirana 1 House 
			  Wellington 1 House 
			  Windhoek 1 House 
			 1998–99   
			 Lille — 1 
			 Marseilles — 1 
			  Copenhagen 2 Flats 
			  Dublin 1 House 
			  Geneva 4 Flats 
			  Honiara 1 House 
			  Johannesburg 2 Houses 
			  Mbabane 1 House 
			  Oslo 1 House 
			  Ottawa 2 Houses 
			  Paris 2 Flats 
			  Ports of Spain 1 House 
			  Pretoria Blocks of Flats 
			  The Hague 1 Flat 
			 1999–2000   
			 Cleveland — 1 
			  Bogota 1 Flat 
			  Bonn 1 House 
			  Bridgetown 1 House 
			  Budapest 1 House 
			  Gevena 2 Flats 
			  Johannesburg 1 Flat 
			  Kuala Lumpur 1 Flat 
			  Madrid 1 House 
			  Mbabane 1 House 
			  Paris 2 Flats 
			  Port Moresby 2 Houses 
			  Santiago 1 House 
			  Stockholm 2 Flats 
			  Sydney 1 House 
			  Tel Aviv 1 House 
			 2000 to 2001   
			 Bonn — 1 
			  Bonn 1 House 
			  Cairo 2 Houses 
			  Capetown 1 House 
			  Dar es Salaam Block of 6 Flats 
			  Dublin 2 Houses 
			  Geneva 1 Flat 
			  Helsinki 1 House 
			  Jakarta 1 House 
			  Kuala Lumpur 1 Flat, 1 House 
			  Lagos Block of 6 Flats 
			  Lisbon 1 House 
			  Madrid 1 House 
			  Nairobi 1 House 
			  Nassau 1 House 
			  Ottawa 3 Flats 
			  Singapore 1 House 
			 2001–2002   
			 Munich — 1 
			 Paris — 1 
			 St. John's — 1 
			  Athens 3 Flats 
			  Bogota 5 Flats 
			  Brussels 1 House, 1 Flat 
			  Buenos Aires 2 Houses 
			  Cairo 1 House 
			  Capetown 3 Houses 
			  Chicago 1 House 
			  Dar es Salaam 1 House 
			  Dublin 1 House 
			  Geneva 1 Flat 
			  Helsinki 1 House, 2 Flats 
			  Jakarta 1 House 
			  Kingston 1 House 
			  Kuala Lumpur 2 Houses 
			  Lagos 2 Houses 
			  Lusaka 1 House 
			  Montevideo 1 Flat 
			  New York 2 Flats 
			  Oslo 1 House 
			  Ottawa 1 House 
			  Paris 6 Flats 
			  Port of Spain 1 House, 1 Flat 
			  Santiago 1 Flat 
			  Stanley 1 House 
			  Stockholm 1 House 
			  Sydney 1 House 
			  Tel Aviv 4 Houses 
			  The Hague 3 Flats 
			  Valetta 1 House 
			  Vienna 1 House 
			  Washington 1 House, 6 Flats 
			 2002–2003   
			 Lyon — 1 
			  Amman 1 House 
			  Bridgetown 4 Houses 
			  Canberra 2 Houses 
			  Dakar 1 House 
			  Dublin 2 Houses 
			  Durban 1 House 
			  Lagos 1 House 
			  Lilongwe 6 Houses 
			  Lusaka 1 House 
			  Madrid 1 Flat, 1 House 
			  Muscat 2 Houses 
			  Ottawa 1 Flat 
			  Paris 2 Flats 
			  Pretoria 1 House 
			  Reykjavik 1 House 
			  Santiago 1 House 
			  Strasbourge 1 House 
			  Washington 1 House, 2 Flats 
			 2003–2004   
			 Gothenburg — 1 
			 Guatemala — 1 
			 Ho Chi Minh City — 1 
			 San Francisco — 1 
			  Auckland 1 House 
			  Budapest 1 Flat 
			  Buenos Aires 1 Flat 
			  Capetown 1 House 
			  Dublin 1 House 
			  Gaberone 2 Houses 
			  Ho Chi Minh City 3 Properties 
			  Madrid 1 House 
			  Nairobi 3 Houses 
			  Port of Spain 1 House 
			  Washington 6 Houses, 1 Flat 
		
	
	Note:
	The total receipts for the period covered is £88.5 million.
	For reasons of commercial confidentiality the FCO cannot give under exemption 13 of Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information individual sales figures.

Departmental Properties

John Maples: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the residential properties purchased by his Department since June 1997, and the total cash cost of each.

Bill Rammell: Since June 1997 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has purchased the following residential properties:
	
		Descriptions
		
			  Properties 
		
		
			 1 April 1997 to 31 March 1998 Antananarivo: Residence 
			  Bridgetown: Staff house 
			  Kyiv: Staff Flat 
			  The Hague: Staff Flat 
			  Vienna: UK Residence 
			 1 April 1998 to 31 March 1999 Montevideo: Staff Flat 
			  Seoul: Staff house 
			 1 April 1999 to 31 March 2000 Budapest: Staff house 
			  Georgetown: Residence 
			  Gothenberg: Residence 
			  Ottawa: Staff accommodation 
			 1 April 2000 to 31 March 2001 Antigua: Residence 
			  Bucharest: Residence 
			  Caracas: Staff Accommodation 
			  Dublin: Residence 
			  Dublin: Staff house 
			  Ottawa: Staff house 
			  Port of Spain: Staff house 
			  Santiago: Staff House  
			  Vilnius: Residence 
			  Yerevan: Residence 
			 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002 Berne: Staff House 
			  Guatemala: Residence 
			  Kyiv: Residence 
			  Stockholm: Staff House 
			 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 New York: Residence 
			  Durban: Staff House 
			  Plymouth: Residence 
			 1 April 2003 to date San Francisco: Residence 
			 Total expenditure £28.5 million 
		
	
	The FCO is withholding information in individual purchase figures under exemption 12 of Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Entry Clearance

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  how many interviews were conducted by the British High Commission in Islamabad, Pakistan for entry clearance for settlement purposes in each month in the last two years.
	(2)  how long it took on average in 2003 for a person applying for entry clearance for settlement to be granted an interview;

Chris Mullin: The table shows the number of interviews for entry clearance applications for settlement, conducted at our High Commission in Islamabad in each month during 2002 and 2003.
	
		
			  Settlement interviews conducted in 2002 Settlement interviews conducted in 2003 
		
		
			 January 1,607 Nil 
			 February 758 Nil 
			 March 1,065 Nil 
			 April 1,296 Nil 
			 May 697 Nil 
			 June Nil Nil 
			 July Nil Nil 
			 August Nil Nil 
			 September Nil Nil 
			 October Nil 196 
			 November Nil 123 
			 December Nil 164 
		
	
	Due to security concerns at the High Commission, three partial evacuations of staff were carried out between October 2001 and May 2002 and only essential staff remained in post by 8 June 2002. Although the number of entry clearance staff in post increased significantly during 2003, the Visa Section's ability to offer applicants an interview has been severely disrupted over the past two years.
	During 2002 entry clearance interviews for applicants wishing to settle in the UK were only conducted from January to 21 May. During 2003 interviews for non-settlement applications resumed on 1 June, although interviews for settlement did notresume until 1 October 2003, since when the average wait for interview has been 10 working days. During 2004, 63 interviews are recorded as being conducted up to 20 January.

Entry Clearance

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people are waiting to be granted an interview by the British high commission in Islamabad for entry clearance for settlement purposes.

Chris Mullin: As at 20 January 2004, 62 people had scheduled appointments for settlement interviews up to 10 February. A further 66 applicants were waiting for their interview appointments to be arranged.

EU Countries (Access)

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the estimated (a) number and (b) percentage is of the populations of (i) Bosnia and Herzegovina and (ii) Kosovo who have visa-free access to European Union countries by virtue of their Croatian passports or citizenship is; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: holding answer 14 January 2004
	While we are aware that a number of Croatian citizens living in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo have visa-free access to European Union countries by virtue of their Croatian passports or citizenship, we do not have details of precise numbers. In order to travel to the UK, all Croatian citizens must have a visa.
	Further research to determine the precise figures required by this question would incur disproportionate costs.

European Court of Human Rights

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the membership of the panel responsible for drawing up the shortlist of United Kingdom candidates for the European Court of Human Rights, indicating (a) whom they represent and (b) who appoints them.

Chris Mullin: The panel comprises:
	Sir Hayden Phillips (chair), Permanent Secretary to the Department for Constitutional Affairs;
	Lord Justice Laws, Judge of the Court of Appeal;
	Lord Cullen of Whitekirk, Lord President of the Court of Session;
	Sir Michael Wood, Legal Adviser to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office;
	Ms Joanne Foster CBE, former Chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission (lay member).
	The composition of the panel was approved by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and the Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs.

Libya

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of continuing activity in Libya between March and September 2003 aimed at developing a nuclear capability; and what assessment was made on where material and development assistance was coming from.

Jack Straw: Under exemption 1 of Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information I am not prepared to comment on particular operations and discussions.

Nuclear-related Technology

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government take to monitor sales of nuclear-related technology by (a) Canada and (b) France.

Denis MacShane: We take a keen interest in supplies to countries of proliferation concern, whatever the source. But the UK Government do not directly monitor sales of nuclear-related technology by Canada and France. Both countries are members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) export control regime which controls the supply of nuclear-related items and technology.
	NSG members undertake not to transfer sensitive items where there is a risk of diversion to acts of nuclear terrorism, to nuclear explosive activity, or unsafeguarded nuclear fuel cycle activity. They exchange notifications issued as a result of national decisions to deny transfers of sensitive items, and undertake not to approve identical exports without first consulting the state that issued the original denial notification. Further information can be found at: www.nuclearsuppliersgroup.org
	Both states are also members of the Zangger Committee, which serves as the "faithful interpreter" of the Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to harmonise nuclear export controls for NPT parties. Committee members produce annual declarations that they have not transferred certain specified material to non-nuclear weapon states not party to the NPT. More information can be found at: www.zanggercommittee.org.

Olympic Games

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will ensure that (a) the British Council and (b) the BBC World Service are included in the diplomatic initiatives to win the 2012 Olympics for London.

Chris Mullin: The International Olympic Committee rules of conduct forbid international promotion of the bid until 15 November.
	Officials will be working with the British Council over the coming months to consider ways in which we can work together to support the bid once promotion is allowed.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has no editorial control over the BBC World Service.

Publicity Campaigns

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much each agency and non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department has spent on (i) advertising and publicity and (ii) information campaigns in each year from 1995–96 to 2003–04 (estimated); and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 22 January 2004
	Budgets for Wilton Park, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's only agency, and our 10 non-departmental public bodies are not held centrally. To compile this information would incur disproportionate cost.

Sri Lanka

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the effects of political tension between the Sri Lankan Prime Minister and President on the peace process and existing ceasefire.

Mike O'Brien: We support the Sri Lankan peace process both politically and practically and welcome the progress made since February 2002 when the ceasefire came into effect. We are concerned that the political dispute between President Kumaratunga and Prime Minister Wickremesinghe could have a detrimental effect on the process at a crucial stage. We continue to impress upon the two leaders the importance of resolving the underlying issues in a transparent way and of finding a rapid and positive way forward so that peace talks can resume as soon as possible. We are working closely with international partners to reinforce these messages. We are encouraged that the ceasefire continues to hold and we welcome the continued commitments of the President, Prime Minister and of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to the ceasefire and the peace process.

St. Helena

John MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the modernising of the St. Helena constitution.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 22 January 2004
	Councillors from St. Helena will be visiting London next week for a further round of talks with FCO officials on the proposed new Constitution. The intention is to have a new Constitution in place in time for the next dissolution of the Legislative Council in July 2005.

St. Helena

John MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the principal reasons were for Her Majesty's Government's refusal to accept the St. Helena proposals for a new constitution.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 22 January 2004
	Discussions are still in progress on a revised constitution for St. Helena. Two councillors from St. Helena, accompanied by their constitutional adviser, are due in London this week to participate in a further round of talks with Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials.

Taiwan

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the accession of Taiwan to the World Health Organisation with full member status.

Bill Rammell: There are difficulties over Taiwanese involvement in a UN forum where statehood is a prerequisite for full membership. We would consider with our EU partners any proposal for Taiwanese involvement in WHO which took account of these difficulties.

DEFENCE

Territorial Army

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what role is envisaged for the Territorial Army in the light of the war in Iraq.

Adam Ingram: The Strategic Defence Review emphasised the need for the Territorial Army to be integrated, relevant and usable. It is an essential part of the current and future structure of the Army. Operations in Iraq have underlined the importance of their role, providing key capabilities and skills which complement those of their regular counterparts.

Afghanistan/Iraq (Withdrawal of Troops)

Mohammad Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the timetable for withdrawing British troops from (a) Afghanistan and (b) Iraq.

Geoff Hoon: We have no plans to withdraw British forces from Afghanistan, where they are helping to support the implementation of the Bonn Agreement. With regard to Iraq, the joint United States—United Kingdom declaration of 20 November 2003 on Iraq says:
	"Our military participation in the multinational force in Iraq will serve the Iraqi people until the Iraqis themselves are able to discharge full responsibility for their own security."
	Our engagement in both Afghanistan and Iraq is driven by clear policy aims, not by arbitrary timetables for withdrawal.

Eurofighter Typhoon

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the unit cost is of each Eurofighter aircraft; when it is expected that it will be brought into service; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The Unit Production Cost of a Typhoon aircraft as published in Major Project Report 2003 is £56.8 million. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence announced in his written statement on 30 June 2003, Official Report, column 1WS, Eurofighter Typhoon achieved Type Acceptance on that day triggering the process of bringing the aircraft into service with the RAF. Two aircraft have been accepted off contract and RAF pilot training and operational evaluation activities have begun. Operational Employment is due to be achieved in the second half of the decade.

Procurement (British Manufacturing)

James Purnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on defence procurement policy and British manufacturing.

Adam Ingram: It is the Government's policy to provide the armed forces with the capabilities which they require at the best value for money for the taxpayer. As the Defence Industrial Policy that my right hon. Friend launched with the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in October 2002 makes clear, we take fully into account the benefit to the United Kingdom economy from defence expenditure, and we seek to encourage a healthy and globally competitive UK defence industry.

Iraq

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the death of an Iraqi civilian during a demonstration policed by British troops at Al-Amarah.

Adam Ingram: Members of the 1st Battalion of the Light Infantry deployed to a riot in Al Amarah on 10 January to assist the Iraqi Police. Two Iraqis were shot by UK forces, one of whom died. Both were preparing to throw grenades, having already thrown other grenades or explosive devices at UK vehicles, and were a threat to our forces and to local Iraqi civilians.

Iraq

Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many reservists deployed on Operation Telic have resigned following the operation.

Ivor Caplin: As at 16 January 2004, 8,694 reservists had been mobilised to support Operation Telic. Of these, 118 had left the reserve forces. Not all departures can be linked directly to Operation Telic. The reasons for leaving include having reached end of engagement, medical discharges, retirement and enlistment into another Service.

Iraq

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many individuals being held by UK forces in Iraq have died in custody; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19 January 2003, Official Report, column 1123W, to my hon. Friend the Member for Leyton and Wanstead (Mr. Cohen).

Alcohol Consumption

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was in the last year for which figures are available of alcoholic beverages bought and consumed on military barracks in (a) the UK and (b) overseas.

Ivor Caplin: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Apache

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made in the last year in respect of the training of aircrew for the WAH-64 Apache.

Adam Ingram: WAH-64 Apache aircrew training has been proceeding to plan since January 2002 and we are on target to complete the first Conversion to Type course in March this year.

Atlantic Crusader

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his Answer of 14 January 2004, Official Report, column 763W, on the Atlantic Crusader, under what flag the ship is sailing; for what purpose his Department has commissioned the vessel; and for how long the charter is.

Adam Ingram: The Atlantic Crusader is sailing under the Cypriot flag and as I said in the answer I gave the hon. Member on 14 January 2004, Official Report, column 763W, is currently returning from a re-supply voyage to the Falkland Islands. She will then make a second return voyage to the Falklands and is due to complete her charter on 7 April 2004.

Depleted Uranium

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Challenger 2 smoothbore tank gun demonstrator project will consider measures to end the use of depleted uranium ammunition.

Adam Ingram: The 120mm smoothbore gun Technology Demonstrator Programme (TDP) aims to provide information on the application of a 120mm smoothbore gun technology to existing and future direct fire platforms, including Challenger 2.
	Part of the TDP involves the investigation of non-Depleted Uranium (DU) 120mm smoothbore ammunition. This option may then be compared with the United Kingdom's existing ammunition in order to determine the optimum means of maintaining the UK's direct fire main armament capability.

Deployment

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel are assigned to (a) theatres of conflict and (b) peacekeeping duties, broken down by country or region involved.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 22 January 2004
	There are approximately 12,000 British Service personnel deployed outside the United Kingdom to theatres of conflict and peace-keeping duties:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Iraq/The Gulf 9,800 
			 The Balkans (Kosovo and Bosnia) 1,400 
			 UN Peace-keeping operations: 
			 Cyprus 400 
			 Afghanistan 340 
			 Africa 40 
			 Georgia 10 
		
	
	The figures exclude Service personnel onboard ships and MOD civilian personnel deployed to these locations in support of these operations.

Far East Prisoners

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in relation to the compensation scheme for civilian prisoners of the Japanese, how many claims (a) have been received, (b) have been paid, (c) have been refused and (d) are outstanding; in relation to (b), how many were (i) not resident in the UK and (ii) not UK citizens but citizens of other Commonwealth countries at the time (A) of payment and (B) of retention; and in relation to (c), how many claimed before 25 June 2001; how many were resident in the UK; and how many of each category were rejected on the grounds they could not show a parent or grandparent born in the UK.

Ivor Caplin: As of 16 January 2004, 2,922 claims for ex gratia payments have been received from former civilian internees, of which 1,882 have been successful; 1,032 have been unsuccessful, of which 851 were received before 25 June 2001; and eight remain to be dealt with. These figures do not include claims from the surviving spouses of former civilian internees, as these figures are not kept separately from the total of claims from the surviving spouses of all the groups covered by the scheme.
	As my hon. Friend the Member for Kircaldy (Dr. Moonie) advised in his answer of 28 April 2003, Official Report, column 52W, at that time approximately 800 claims from former civilian internees, including surviving spouses with addresses abroad, were rejected on the blood link criterion, while approximately 300 claims from civilians, including spouses, with United Kingdom addresses were rejected on the blood link criterion. We do not have the other figures sought because the details necessary to produce them were either not required or sought from claimants, or not collated as part of the process of verification of claims.

Foreign Ship Chartering

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department takes to ensure that foreign ships it charters meet international convention standards for safety and working conditions.

Adam Ingram: Vessels being considered for chartering are assessed for technical compliance against a number of key criteria which will include: Marine Superintendent's suitability reports, nature and volume of cargo.
	A risk assessment is undertaken, which will include: Port State Inspection records, flag, classification society and age.
	When considered necessary, a ship's survey will be undertaken by a recognised marine surveyor prior to any decision to charter.

Human Rights

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what special training has been provided for the Special Investigation Branch of the Royal Military Police on the implications of the coming into force of the Human Rights Act.

Adam Ingram: Special training on changes to Special Investigation Branch (SIB) policies and procedures consequent upon the introduction of the Human Rights Act 1998 has been provided to all SIB units.

Human Rights

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures he has taken to guarantee the (a) effectiveness and (b) independence of investigation of suspicious deaths among Service personnel occurring overseas as required by Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Adam Ingram: The rules governing investigation of suspicious deaths of Service personnel outside the United Kingdom are detailed in the Queens Regulations for each Service. The Investigations Branch of the relevant Service Police conducts investigations, where appropriate, in conjunction with the local civilian police force. All cases of sudden death are investigated to Home Office standards using accepted best practice.
	Where the body is returned to the United Kingdom, it automatically becomes subject to an inquest by HM Coroner or (in Scotland) the Procurator Fiscal.
	Full account is taken of our obligations under ECHR.

Project Soothsayer

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the progress of Project Soothsayer.

Adam Ingram: Project Soothsayer is an important part of our investment in Network Enabled Capability (NEC), and was highlighted as such in the New Chapter to the Strategic Defence Review.
	Soothsayer will provide Tactical Electronic Warfare equipment for the United Kingdom land forces, and is now in the demonstration and manufacture phase. The programme is proceeding to plan and is currently on track to meet its initial in-service date of 2006. It is also expected to meet its cost and performance targets.

Rape/Violence Against Women

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made in investigating allegations of rape by UK military personnel in Kenya during the last 20 years.

Adam Ingram: As part of their on-going investigations, the Royal Military Police Special Investigation Branch (SIB) deployed a team of 20 to Kenya in October 2003 to conduct witness interviews. The SIB completed in excess of 100 witness interviews prior to Christmas. This process, which involves taking video-taped statements of witnesses and gathering supporting evidence, is likely to continue throughout this year.

Rape/Violence Against Women

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what training is given to UK military personnel stationed abroad on gender sensitivity and issues around violence against women with particular reference to (a) rape, (b) trafficking and (c) forced prostitution.

Adam Ingram: No specific awareness training is given to United Kingdom military personnel about violence against women, rape, trafficking and forced prostitution. All members of the armed forces are bound by codes of conduct that set out the standard of behaviour expected of them. They also receive regular diversity training, which includes gender awareness. Personnel posted abroad receive instruction on the customs and culture of the host country including, where relevant, the cultural status of women.

Reserve Forces

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to revise the Reserve Forces (Safeguard of Employment) Act 1985, with particular reference to (a) simplifying the procedure, (b) taking into account loss of (i) pension and (ii) benefits and (c) the legal expenses required in progressing a defended case to a final hearing.

Ivor Caplin: I refer the hon. Gentlemen to the latter part of my reply of 20 January 2004, Official Report, columns 1124–25W.
	Once this examination is complete we shall discuss with the Department of Trade and Industry (which is responsible for administering the Reinstatement Committees under the 1985 Act) what, if any, revisions might be necessary.

Reserve Forces

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in what circumstances his Department provides legal assistance to reservists to seek redress when they have lost their employment allegedly as a consequence of mobilisation; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: The Ministry of Defence does not provide legal advice or representation to reservists seeking reinstatement to their civilian employment under the terms of the Reserve Forces (Safeguard of Employment) Act 1985. It does, however, provide advice to reservists on their legal right to reclaim their civilian employment and how to seek reinstatement. Each reservist receives a copy of JSP 532, "Guidance for Reservists Returning to Civilian Employment Following a Period of Mobilised Service". The Supporting Britain's Reservists and Employers (SaBRE) campaign team provides a help line and a website which gives additional information and advice.

Reserve Forces

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what evaluation has been made of the impact of the SaBRE campaign; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Ivor Caplin: Since the launch of the SaBRE campaign in October 2002, there have been two substantial pieces of independent research on the impact and effectiveness of the campaign, both commissioned through COI Communications. The reports found that while employers' awareness of the campaign in its first year of existence was low, over 60 per cent. of companies who had been in contact with SaBRE felt that that contact had been positive and worthwhile. The lessons we learn from both these and future studies will form a central part of future SaBRE campaign activity.

Reserve Forces

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many reservists from volunteer reserve units in (a) each of the three armed Services and (b) each of the 11 areas of the country tasked with aiding the civil authorities in handling major incidents have been mobilised for Operation Telic. [R]

Ivor Caplin: The number of Civil Contingencies Reaction Force (CCRF) members who are serving on Operation Telic by CCRF region is detailed in the table. In the time available, we have only been able to identify those individuals currently mobilised to support Operation Telic. All are members of the Territorial Army.
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 2 South East Brigade (Bde) 26 
			 49 East of England Bde 126 
			 145 Home Counties Bde 39 
			 43 Wessex Bde 2 
			 143 West Midlands Bde 33 
			 160 Wales Bde 25 
			 15 North East Bde (N) 99 
			 15 North East Bde (S) 147 
			 42 North West Bde (N) 21 
			 42 North West Bde (S) 18 
			 51 Scottish Bde (Highland) 45 
			 51 Scottish Bde (Lowland) 34 
			 London Regiment 150 
			 Northern Ireland (9)0 
		
	
	(9) Only to the extent that once a member is deployed, he is replaced.

Royal Navy

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) frigates and (b) destroyers are in service with the Royal Navy.

Geoff Hoon: There are 20 frigates and 11 destroyers currently in service in the Royal Navy.

CABINET OFFICE

Central Office of Information

Ben Chapman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made in making the Central Office of Information more responsive to Parliament.

Douglas Alexander: External performance targets are published each year by means of a written statement. Annual performance against external targets is reported and published in the Central Office of Information (COI) Annual Report and Accounts. This is laid before the House each year before the summer recess following the end of the financial year to which the report relates, and copies placed in the Libraries of the Houses.

Civil Contingencies Bill

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will list the (a) dates and (b) venues of the public consultation in Wales on the draft Civil Contingencies Bill.

Douglas Alexander: The Public Consultation exercise for England and Wales took place over a period of 12 weeks from 19 June until 11 September.
	Of the 379 responses received, 20 were received from organisations based in Wales such as the police, county councils and county borough councils.
	Two consultation events took place took during the summer of 2003. The first event was held at Colywn Bay on 21 July for organisations from north Wales. Cardiff hosted the second event on 4 August, which was attended by organisations in south Wales.
	The format at both events was the same. The Bill Team gave an extended presentation, followed by a full question and answer session.

Motor Vehicles

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many Government (a) cars, (b) vans and (c) trucks in use were built (i) in the United Kingdom, (ii) in the EU and (iii) outside the EU.

Douglas Alexander: The responsibility for the provision of ministerial cars and drivers has been delegated under the terms of the Framework Document to the Government Car Despatch Agency. I have asked its Chief Executive, Mr. Nick Matheson, to write to my hon. Friend. Copies of his letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Public Services Audit

Nick Gibb: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will place in the Library a copy of the Cabinet Office paper containing an audit of public services referred to in The Times 14 January.

Douglas Alexander: Internal discussion and advice to Ministers remains confidential in line with exemption 2 set out in Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
	Details of progress against the Government's Public Service Agreement (PSA) targets are available via: departmental reports; the HM Treasury website; http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/performance/ and in a presentation by Professor Michael Barber at the Prime Minister's Press Conference on 30 July 2003; http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page4295.asp

Publicity Campaigns

Brian Cotter: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much (a) his Department and (b) each agency and non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department has spent on (i) advertising and (ii) information campaigns in each year from 1995–96 to 2003–04 (estimated); and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: Details of my Department's spend on advertising in each year from 1997–98 to 2003–04 (estimated) can be found in the table.
	
		
			  Advertising (£000) 
		
		
			 1997–98 144 
			 1998–99 138 
			 1999–2000 262 
			 2000–01 464 
			 2001–02 2,708 
			 2002–03 400 
			 2003–04 (estimated) 267 
		
	
	Information prior to 1997–98 is not held on our accounting system and is therefore available only at disproportionate cost.
	Expenditure incurred on information campaigns is not separately identifiable on our accounting system. Any such expenditure is included within the advertising figures shown.
	Expenditure incurred by non-departmental public bodies sponsored by my Department is not held on our accounting system and is therefore available only at disproportionate cost.
	The increase in advertising expenditure from 1998–99 to 2000–01 from £138,000 to £464,000 is due to expenditure on recruitment advertising for posts within the Department. These posts range from administration and junior management level through to the senior civil service. Also included is recruitment advertising expenditure for specialist placements for the 'Development Centre', which is part of the Government Information and Communication Service.
	The advertising figure for 2001–02 includes £2,491,000 incurred by the Office of the E-Envoy for the UK Online advertising campaign.

Regulatory Impact Assessments

Norman Lamb: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of regulatory impact assessments fully complied with Government guidelines in terms of new content in 2003.

Douglas Alexander: The Cabinet Office Regulatory Impact Unit is working with Departments to ensure that Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) are consistent with the most recent guidance and are proportionate to the likely impact of the proposal. Information on overall compliance with the guidelines is not collected, but from April this year, Departments will have to provide information on better regulation, including their compliance with the RIA process and their use of RIAs, as part of their annual reporting requirements.

Special Advisers

Vincent Cable: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether special advisers have access to the Knowledge Network; whether statistics are collected at constituency level by Government Departments specifically for use on the Network; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: Access to the Knowledge Network is restricted to Ministers, their offices and civil servants, including special advisers, via the Government Secure Intranet. Government Departments do not collect statistics at constituency level specifically for use on the Knowledge Network.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Regional Development Agencies

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which regional development agencies have (a) an office and (b) representatives situated outside the United Kingdom.

Jacqui Smith: I have been advised of the following answers by the individual Regional Development Agencies (RDAs).
	Advantage West Midlands
	Advantage West Midlands have offices in France (one person), Germany (one person), Sweden (two representatives who are not direct employees of the Agency) and Belgium (one person).
	In North America, Advantage West Midlands shares representation with their partner agency, EMDA, under the British Midlands' brand. Together they have a total of five offices and seven full-time staff based in Washington, Boston, Chicago, San Jose and Toronto; they also employ the services of a telemarketing agency in North America. The British Midlands is also represented on a full-time basis in Japan with two staff. In South East Asia, India and Australia, the British Midlands has part-time representation with offices in Singapore, Mumbai and Sydney and a total of six agents.
	East of England Development Agency (EEDA)
	The East of England Developments Agency EEDA has an inward investment office in San Jose (Silicon Valley) a joint project between EEDA and Invest East of England. There are no representatives as the office is co-ordinated by the vice-president for business development at Invest East of England.
	EEDA also subscribes to the East of England partnership office in Brussels and the Essex and East of England International Trade office in Jiangsu Province China (but does not have offices or representatives).
	East Midlands Development Agency (EMDA)
	The East Midlands Development Agency (EMDA) is represented in Europe by part-time agents in Germany (Munich—two staff) and Scandinavia (Malmo—one person); EMDA also employs a telemarketing agency in France.
	In North America, EMDA shares representation with their partner agency, Advantage West Midlands, under the British Midlands' brand. Together they have a total of five offices and seven full-time staff based in Washington, Boston, Chicago, San Jose and Toronto; they also employ the services of a telemarketing agency in North America. The British Midlands is also represented on a full-time basis in Japan with two staff. In South East Asia, India and Australia, the British Midlands has part time representation with offices in Singapore, Mumbai and Sydney and a total of six agents.
	The East Midlands Development Agency is also a partner in the East Midlands European Office (EMEO), based in Brussels. The partnership also includes the region's strategic local authorities, the Regional Assembly and the East Midlands Regional Local Government Association. In addition, EMDA line manages EMEO on behalf of the regional partnership.
	London Development Agency (LDA)
	The LDA is a partner in the London European Office, a staffed GLA partnership office in Brussels.
	North West Development Agency (NMDA)
	The North West Development Agency has an office with two members of staff (one full-time and one part-time) in Japan.
	As part of a North of England collaboration (a joint venture with One NorthEast and Yorkshire Forward) there are offices in Australia (Sydney) and North America: Chicago (five people), Boston (two people), Atlanta (one person) and Los Angeles: (one person full-time and one person part-time).
	The NWDA with the North West Regional Assembly (NWRA) jointly fund an office and one member of staff in Brussels.
	One NorthEast
	One NorthEast has offices in China: Shanghai (two people) Japan: Osaka (one person, part-time) and Tokyo (two people), Korea: Seoul (one person), Taiwan: Taipei (one person).
	As part of a North of England collaboration (a joint venture with North West Development Agency and Yorkshire Forward) there are offices and representatives in Australia (Sydney) and North America (Chicago, Boston, Atlanta and Los Angeles).
	There is also a North of England Office in Brussels, managed by the Regional Assembly.
	South East England Development Agency
	The South East of England Development Agency (SEEDA) shares an officer post with the Regional Assembly operating from South East England House in Brussels, co-located and working with other partners from around the Region. SEEDA is also represented in Washington DC by Odell Simms & Associates and has a representative in each of the following cities: Berlin, San Diego, Boston, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo, Osaka and Sydney (NSW), the latter post being part-time.
	South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA)
	The South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) have an office in Japan with four staff and in North America, SWRDA have a dispersed team of four staff, however there is no central office there. Yorkshire Forward
	Yorkshire Forward has offices and representatives in Japan and China.
	As part of a North of England collaboration (a joint venture with North West Development Agency and OneNorth East) there are offices and representatives in Australia (Sydney) and North America (Chicago, Boston, Atlanta and Los Angeles).

Regional Development Agencies

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will provide a breakdown for each region of how her Department allocated its funding of the regional development agencies in 2003–04; and what amounts have been allocated to each region in each year since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: Eight RDAs were established in 1998 and their first full year of operation was in 1999–2000. The London Development Agency was established in 2000–01. The table shows the RDAs' grant allocation and expenditure for each of the financial years between 1999–2000 and 2002–03 and their initial allocations for 2003–04.
	
		£ million
		
			  1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
			 RDA Allocation Expenditure Allocation Expenditure Allocation Expenditure Allocation Expenditure Allocation 
		
		
			 Advantage West Midlands 108 103 124 113 171 141 205 204 221 
			 East of England 30 30 40 36 63 55 89 88 85 
			 East Midlands 46 41 77 67 97 86 102 101 118 
			 London n/a n/a 268 235 289 266 296 295 291 
			 North West 141 141 159 156 277 270 275 274 318 
			 ONE North West 92 92 101 98 163 156 193 193 219 
			 South East 64 63 75 73 111 97 115 112 123 
			 South West of England 43 43 63 62 92 85 103 103 101 
			 Yorkshire Forward 121 121 148 125 246 207 211 211 243 
			 Totals 645 636 1,054 965 1,508 1,363 1,589 1,581 1,719 
		
	
	Note:
	These figures are the grant paid to Agencies and expenditure funded by grant. The Agencies total income will also include EU grants, receipts from sales of property and rental income.
	DTI's own contribution to the RDAs was £2 million in 1999–2000, £17 million in 2000–01, £57 million in 2001–02, £161 million in 2002–03 and £177.7million in 2003–04.

Research and Development

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to whom expenditure on research and development is distributed; how many staff are directly employed as a result; and how many research establishments of the Department and its agencies there are in each region and nation of the United Kingdom.

Patricia Hewitt: Research and development expenditure is distributed to a range of bodies and principally via the research councils to higher education institutes and their own research establishments. Some 11,000 staff are directly employed by the research councils. The following table gives a regional and national breakdown of the councils' research establishments. Funding is also distributed to industry via schemes such as LINK. Figures for staff directly employed as a result of such funding are not available.
	
		
			 Region/country Number of research establishments 
		
		
			 East Midlands 4 
			 East of England 13 
			 London 7 
			 North East 0 
			 North West 4 
			 Northern Ireland 1 
			 Scotland 15 
			 South East 20 
			 South West 11 
			 Wales 2

Trade Agreements

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on proposals to improve rules of origin for economic partnership agreements.

Mike O'Brien: The UK Government recognise the need for a review of the current preferential rules of origin. Support for less onerous regulations on rules of origin is outlined in the Government's 2000 White Paper, "Eliminating World Poverty: Making Globalisation Work for the Poor".
	With a number of ACP regions now having reached the stage of launching Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations with the EU, there is an increased focus on some of the detailed issues facing EPAs, including rules of origin. An experts meeting on rules of origin for EPAs is planned for February 2004 in Brussels.
	More generally on the issue of preferential rules of origin, the Commission (DG TAXUD) is consulting widely on this issue through its recently published Green Paper, "Future of Rules of Origin in Preferential Trade Agreements".

British Energy

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much public subsidy has been given to British Energy (a) to cover cash shortfall for unexpected maintenance works and (b) for other reasons; how much interest is repayable; and when she expects the money to be repaid.

Stephen Timms: The credit facility is a loan facility to British Energy that must be repaid by the company under the terms of the restructuring plan. It has been provided in respect of only the company's working capital requirements and cash collateral for its trading activities. A commercial rate of interest of 1 per cent. over the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) is chargeable on amounts drawn for working capital, and a fee of 1 per cent. per annum on amounts drawn for cash collateral. The maximum amount available under the facility was £650 million but now stands at £200 million. As I said in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for East Lothian (Anne Picking) on 14 January 2004, Official Report, column 780W, British Energy have repaid all outstanding amounts under the credit facility.

Bullying/Harassment

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what steps her Department is taking to encourage more employers to frame a formal policy on bullying and harassment in the workplace;
	(2)  what plans she has to improve the support available for employees who face bullying or harassment at work;
	(3)  what assessment her Department has made of the impact of current Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service guidance relating to bullying and harassment in the workplace.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Government take bullying at work very seriously and believe that employees should be able to work without fear of being bullied or harassed by employers, fellow employees or anybody else.
	There is a safety net of legislation already in existence that employees can turn to. This includes the: Sex Discrimination Act, Race Relations Act, Disability Discrimination Act, Protection from Harassment Act, Health and Safety Act, Employment Rights Act and the Employment Act 2002.
	In addition New Employment Equality Regulations came into force last December protecting those experiencing discrimination, harassment and victimisation at work on grounds of sexual orientation or religion or belief. We are working to support the dissemination of high quality best practice information on the new regulations to employers, individuals and—importantly—advice giving organisations and agencies through the funding we have allocated in the current financial year.
	The Health and Safety Executive are producing a set of management Standards. The Standards are designed to provide a yardstick for organisations by which they can gauge the levels of stress and other associated problems among staff thereby helping them to identify where action is required. One of these, the Relationship Management Standard, focuses on bullying.
	Assisting with the development of best practice operations is a group, under ACAS management called Race and Equality Advisory Service (REAS). This team of advisers deliver practical, best practice equality advice to organisations. This complements ACAS's wider role of providing services to organisations to help their businesses to flourish.
	Continuing the promotion of best practice is the Partnership at Work Fund administered by DTI. This has provided grants to support organisations wishing to focus on best practice initiatives specifically encouraging employees and employers to work together to resolve issues. A number of projects have focused on reducing bullying, while others have included it as part of their wider objectives.
	Bullying and harassment is an area of growing importance in the work of ACAS. It uses multiple channels for dissemination of guidance including: publications (available in hard copy and through the internet); face to face training and seminars; advice via the ACAS National Helpline; and also more in depth focused work within workplaces Two publications—'Bullying and Harassment: A Guide for Managers and Employers' and 'Bullying and Harassment: A Guide for Employees' with an annual distribution of approximately 26,000 copies offer guidance and form the basis of training programmes and seminars organised by ACAS.
	In 2003, around 200 seminars and training events were run focusing on the subject of bullying and harassment. The feedback from delegates to ACAS events is overwhelmingly positive with, across the board, 97 per cent. reporting that they were satisfied with the quality and content of their training. Follow up work with delegates in 2003, around 200 seminars and training events were run focussing on the subject of bullying and has also shown that the guidance offered by ACAS has positive and lasting benefits with 60 per cent. saying that they review policy and practice after attending ACAS events and around a third actually implemented change or introduced new policies after attending events.
	The ACAS National Helpline also plays an important role in disseminating guidance. Around 600 calls are received monthly on this issue. Overall the feedback on the helpline is found to be extremely beneficial with 92 per cent. reporting satisfaction with the service received from the Helpline and 84 per cent. of callers reporting that they found the information provided was valuable in fully answering their inquiry.

Business Link

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list (a) the allocations to area-based Business Link teams, (b) the expenditure per head of population in each area and (c) the basis formula for the distribution of resources to each area for (i) 2003–04 and (ii) 2004–05.

Nigel Griffiths: holding answer 22 January 2004
	A breakdown of Business Link Operator (BLO) Core Services allocations for the 2003–04 financial year, together with a breakdown of the allocations divided by resident adult (16+) population data, by individual BLO is shown in the following table
	The allocation formula for 2003–04 and 2004–05 is the same. However the data which make up the constituent parts of the formula was updated where possible for 2004–05, resulting in changes between these years. The formula is made up of the following four elements.
	1. £99.5 million is allocated in line with current business population (indicator used is the Inter Departmental Business Register for all PAYE and VAT registrations).
	2. £20 million for Business Start-ups. Funding is awarded in line in reverse proportion to an aspirational rate of 75 VAT registrations per 10,000 adult population (indicator used is VAT Registrations published by SBS and Resident Adult (16+) population data supplied by the ONS)
	3. £10 million is allocated in line with Social Deprivation Index (indicator used is Deprivation data, weighted 2000 indices, produced by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister).
	4. £10 million is allocated in line with population (indicator used is latest Resident Adult (16+) population data supplied by the ONS).
	
		£
		
			 Business Link Area BLO CS Allocation 2003–04 BLO CS Expenditure per head of population(10) 
		
		
			 County Durham 1,159,764 2.90 
			 Northumberland 823,758 3.28 
			 Tees Valley 1,460,480 2.88 
			 Tyne and Wear 2,473,608 2.85 
			 Cheshire and Warrington 2,427,030 3.48 
			 Cumbria 1,472,109 3.70 
			 E. Lancashire 1,294,306 3.21 
			 Manchester 3,712,759 3.46 
			 Merseyside 3,609,837 3.06 
			 N and W Lancashire 2,482,841 3.41 
			 North Manchester 2,868,225 3.13 
			 Humberside 2,310,105 3.32 
			 N. Yorkshire -2,309,061 3.76 
			 S. Yorkshire 3,045,706 3.00 
			 W. Yorkshire 5,222,016 3.16 
			 Derbyshire 2,502,742 3.24 
			 Leicestershire 2,460,230 3.42 
			 Lincolnshire and Rutland 1,960,561 3.49 
			 Northamptonshire 1,721,966 3.41 
			 Nottinghamshire 2,562,962 3.11 
			 Birmingham and Solihull 2,989,291 3.24 
			 Black Country 2,724,755 3.18 
			 Coventry and Warwickshire 2,202,117 3.36 
			 Hereford and Worcs 2,152,122 3.69 
			 Shropshire 1,277,861 3.58 
			 Staffordshire 2,743,968 3.26 
			 Bedfordshire 1,515,800 3.39 
			 Cambridgeshire 2,075,620 3.61 
			 Essex 4,582,147 3.53 
			 Hertfordshire 3,145,262 3.83 
			 Norfolk 2,298,503 3.49 
			 Suffolk 1,979,534 3.66 
			 London 23,655,555 4.00 
			 Kent 4,287,157 3.40 
			 M. Keynes, Oxon, Bucks 4,093,239 3.97 
			 Surrey 3,536,940 4.14 
			 Sussex 4,440,986 3.63 
			 Hampshire 5,025,619 3.49 
			 Dorset 2,079,099 3.62 
			 Berkshire 2,447,040 3.83 
			 Devon and Cornwall 4,649,136 3.58 
			 Gloucestershire 1,715,191 3.76 
			 Somerset 1,527,832 3.76 
			 West 2,759,881 3.45 
			 Wiltshire 1,715,281 3.50 
		
	
	(10) BLO CS allocations are divided by the resident adult (16+) population (latest data is
	mid-year 2002 (rounded to the nearest hundred)
	Source
	Office for National Statistics (ONS))

Civil Servants (Disabilities)

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made in meeting targets for the proportion of people with disabilities in senior posts in her Department.

Patricia Hewitt: In 2000, benchmarks for staff with disabilities in DTI were set across all grades. Targets set internally for staff in senior civil service were:
	
		Percentage
		
			  Benchmark for SCS posts  
		
		
			 2000 (base year) 3.8 
			 2002 3.9 
			 2004 4.2 
			 2005 4.7 
		
	
	The Cabinet Office publishes statistical information about senior civil servants with disabilities on its website http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/statistics/documents/pdf/ disability-pct03.pdf. This shows that as of 1 April 2003, 4.0 per cent. of DTI HQ staff in the senior civil service had a disability.
	I have recently launched the DTI Disability@Work strategy to further improve career opportunities for staff with disabilities. I expect this will benefit staff at all levels and help increase our representation throughout the grades over time.

Civil Servants (Disabilities)

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will set out the number of employees in her Department who have a disability, broken down by disability type.

Patricia Hewitt: The information requested is in the following table:
	
		
			 Type of disability Number of staff(11) 
		
		
			 Hearing impairment 33 
			 Visual impairment 23 
			 Speech impairment (12)— 
			 Learning difficulty 5 
			 Mental illness 13 
			 Mobility impairment 70 
			 Physical co-ordination 32 
			 Reduced physical capacity 78 
			 Severe disfigurement (12)— 
			 Other 29 
			 Total staff with disabilities 287 
			 Total DTI staff 4,031 
		
	
	(11) Data as at 1 January 2004.
	(12) Five or less individuals; the DTI code of practice precludes us from reporting the numbers to preserve confidentiality.

Clergy Employment Rights

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2003, Official Report, column 102W, when she will make an announcement regarding the implementation of section 23 of the Employment Relations Act 1999 in relation to employment rights for clergy.

Gerry Sutcliffe: We have been considering the current coverage of employment protections as part of the Employment Status Review, including the position of the clergy; we hope to publish a Government response shortly. The Government believe that all workers should be treated fairly, and welcomes the fact that the Church of England is giving serious consideration to the issue of employment protections for its clergy.

Credit Agencies

Jane Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if her Department will put in place regulations to oblige credit agencies to update their records on individuals; and if she will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Individuals have the right, under existing legislation, to ask for their credit reference file to be amended if it contains information which is incorrect or which is about people with whom they have no financial connection.
	If the credit reference agency refuses to comply with an individual's request they can ask the Information Commissioner to assess whether or not this decision is correct under the Data Protection Act 1998.
	The Information Commissioner can be contacted at Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF or on 01625 545700.

Departmental Advertising

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much (a) her Department and (b) each agency and non-departmental public body sponsored by her Department spent on (i) advertising and (ii) information campaigns in each year since 1995–96; what her estimate is for 2003–04; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 21 January 2004
	For expenditure on advertising by my Department through COI from 1995–96 to 2000–01. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Mr. Cable) on 20 November 2001, Official Report, column 162W. Expenditure for 2001–02, 2002–03 and 2003–04 (to date) was £6,610,240, £13,741,906 and £2,044,497 respectively. These figures include advertising by the Small Business Service and exclude VAT.
	Information on publicity expenditure from centrally held budgets is contained in the Government's Expenditure Plans and, more recently, the DTI's annual Departmental Report, which are available in the Libraries of the House. Figures relating to other information campaigns, and information on publicity and advertising by NDPBs, are not held centrally and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
	Letter from Claire Clancy to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 26 January 2004
	I am responding to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on behalf of Companies House, which is an Executive Agency of the DTI. The expenditure on publicity and advertising is as follows:
	
		£000
		
			  1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 Forecast 2003–04 
		
		
			 Publicity 199 237 322 252 343 
			 Advertising 391 401 586 526 491 
		
	
	Data for years 1995–96 to 1998–99 are not readily available and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	Letter from Desmond Flynn to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 26 January 2004
	The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has asked me to reply to you on behalf of The Insolvency Service in respect of your question (2003/980) asked how much (a) her Department and (b) each agency and non-departmental public body sponsored by her Department spent on (i) advertising and (ii) information campaigns in each year since 1995–96; what her estimate is for 2003–04.
	Information on expenditure by The Insolvency Service Executive Agency through the Central Office of Information is only available from 1999 onwards. This publicity is the release of information on successful orders to disqualify directors under the Disqualification of Directors Act 1986. The expenditure was:
	
		£000
		
			  Amount 
		
		
			 1999–2000 115,000 
			 2000–2001 112,000 
			 2001–2002 119,000 
			 2002–2003 81,000 
			 Estimated to end 2003–04 80,105 
		
	
	No other publicity or information campaigns have been carried out by The Insolvency Service in the period 1995 to date.
	Letter from Roger Heathcote to Mr. Malcolm Bruce dated, 26 January 2004
	You tabled a question on 19 January 2004 to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, asking how much (a) her Department and (b) each agency and non departmental public body sponsored by her Department spent on (i) advertising and (ii) information campaigns in each year since 1995–96; what her estimate is for 2003–04; and if she will make a statement. I have been asked to reply in respect of the Employment Tribunals Service (ETS) which is an executive agency of the DTI.
	The Employment Tribunals Service has not had and will have no expenditure on advertising or information campaigns for the years in question.
	Letter from Caren Fullerton in Ron Marchants' absence to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 26 January 2004
	I am replying to this parliamentary question, tabled on 19 January 2004, regarding the amount spent on advertising and information campaigns.
	The Patent Office, an executive Agency of the DTI, has undertaken a number of activities aimed at highlighting the important contribution to innovation in the knowledge economy made by Intellectual Property to business, education and the wider community throughout the UK. The priority has been to develop partnerships with key organisations to deliver this message through the network of business advisors and information providers available in the UK to create an "IP literate society".
	To achieve this aim we have used strategic advertising to target specific audiences. New guidance literature on patents has been developed which underline the office's commitment.
	
		
			  £000 
		
		
			  
			  
			 1995–96 1,963 
			 1996–97 1,719 
			 1997–98 8,908 
			 1998–99 12,364 
			 1999–2000 2,951 
			 2000–01 7,391 
			 2001–02 4,822 
			 2002–03 3,596 
			 2003–04 1,500 
		
	
	The amount spent on information campaigns is only available from 2000–01. To obtain figures for early years would involve disproportionate costs. These figures are:
	
		
			  £000 
		
		
			 2000–01 30,037 
			 2001–02 82,814 
			 2002–03 104,651 
			 2003–04 160,000 
		
	
	In addition to the above the Patent Office maintains two internet websites (www.patent.gov.uk and www.intellectual-property.gov.uk which are used to advertise our services and events.
	Letter from Dr. J. W. Llewellyn to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 26 January 2004
	The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has asked me to reply on behalf of the National Weights and Measures Laboratory (NWML) to your question about the Agency's spend on advertising and information campaigns for each year since 1995–96.
	The Agency has a small publicity budget but the financial figures do not differentiate between advertising and information campaigns. Figures are not easily retrievable prior to 1999–2000. Expenditure on publicity for each year since 1999–2000 is as follows:
	
		
			  Expenditure (£000) 
		
		
			 1995–96 Not available 
			 1996–97 Not available 
			 1997–98 Not available 
			 1998–99 Not available 
			 1999–2000 37 
			 2000–01 59 
			 2001–02 88 
			 2002–03 60 
			 2003–04 (Estimate) 80

Departmental Grants

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding was allocated for small business support under the Smart scheme from the time of its inception to its closure; and how much of this money was distributed directly to grant recipients.

Nigel Griffiths: Following a small pilot in 1986, the full Smart scheme was launched in 1988. Initially, there was no separately identifiable funding allocation for the scheme within the larger "Innovation Budget" which provided funds for several other schemes. Smart originally operated as a competition with a fixed number of "Stage 1", or feasibility, awards but a variable number of "Stage 2", or development, awards. The SPUR scheme was introduced in 1991 and merged with Smart in 1997. Since that time there has been a separate provision for the expanded Smart. Expenditure on Smart will occur for several years yet as existing projects progress. Provision, where separately identified, and expenditure were as follows:
	
		£ million
		
			 Financial year Expenditure Plans or Provision where separately identified(13) Expenditure(13) 
		
		
			 1988–89 — 3.0 
			 1989–90 — 5.0 
			 1990–91 — 9.0 
			 1991–92 — 12.3 
			 1992–93 — 18.0 
			 1993–94 — 21.5 
			 1994–95 21.6 21.9 
			 1995–96 16.5 20.1 
			 1996–97 — 20.5 
			 1997–98 30.0 25.8 
			 1998—99 30.0 24.9 
			 1999–2000 32.1 26.5 
			 2000–01 35.9 27.3 
			 2001–02 27 23.7 
			 2002–03 27 32.1 
		
	
	(13) Including SPUR from 1991.

Departmental Grants

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding has been allocated to finance the Knowledge Transfer Partnerships scheme; and to what timescale this funding applies.

Nigel Griffiths: DTI funding for Knowledge Transfer Partnerships in F/Y 2004–05, combined with the pre-existing commitments for the Teaching Company Scheme (TCS), which it succeeds, is planned to continue at about the same level as the expenditure in the current financial year, which is approximately £18 million. About a future £7 million per annum is currently provided by other pubic sector bodies.

Departmental Grants

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding has been allocated for the new Grant for Research and Development scheme; and over what timescale this funding will be available.

Nigel Griffiths: An initial £100 million has been allocated for projects commencing in the financial years 2003–04, 2004–05 and 2005–06. There will be expenditure on those projects until 2010.

Departmental Grants

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding her Department is providing in (a) 2003–04 and (b) in future years to support the Promoting Women's Enterprise Support Initiative.

Jacqui Smith: DTI is not aware of a programme entitled Promoting Women's Enterprise Support Initiative. It is believed that this is a reference to the measures the Government are taking to support the growth of women's enterprise nationally as they implement the recommendations of the Strategic Framework for Women's Enterprise launched last year.
	In this regard, the Government will continue, in this and future years, to fund the promotion of women's enterprise through their key partners—in particular, the Business Link network and through their work with Regional Development agencies and a number of women's enterprise organisations.

Departmental Publications

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what criteria her Department uses when deciding whether a leaflet which it publishes is to be made available only on its website.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department decides whether a leaflet should be published only on the internet on a case-by-case basis. Officials consider the intended target audience of the leaflet, whether the audience is likely to have internet access and the cost of publishing the document in hard copy. Where the publication is a lengthy or technical document, the Department may produce a hard copy executive summary, with the full document available only on the internet.
	The Department constantly reviews feedback we receive on this issue to ensure that our publications are accessible to those who need them.

Agricultural Produce (Dumping)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what quantitative assessment she has made of the impact of dumping of agricultural produce by developed countries on the economies and living standards of developing countries.

Mike O'Brien: The best source of information on this topic are the large number of studies which have already been undertaken by international organisations such as the World Bank, IMF, UNCTAD and the OECD, and by charitable organisations such as Oxfam. The work of these organisations demonstrates through individual case studies the adverse effects which dumping of subsidised agricultural products on world markets can have on developing country economies. It remains, however, very difficult to make an accurate quantitative economic assessment of the overall impact of dumping of subsidised agricultural produce on developing country markets. The World Bank have, however, estimated that the comprehensive reform of all aspects of agricultural policies in developed countries could boost the income of developing countries by as much as $100 billion.

EU Regional Funding

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much EU regional funding has been invested in (a) the North West region and (b) Merseyside in each of the last five years.

Jacqui Smith: The following table shows spend over the last five years against the Objective 1, 2 and 3 EU funding streams. Objective 1 applies only to Merseyside, Objective 2 and 3 cover a range of areas across the North West, except for Merseyside.
	
		£
		
			 Financial year Objective 1 Objective 2 Objective 3 
		
		
			 1999 101,303,112 37,446,891 41,642,065 
			 2000 61,082,497 80,373,232 10,989,260 
			 2001 123,604,787 83,988,081 26,187,632 
			 2002 98,520,307 21,163,881 47,490,296 
			 2003 84,503,461 138,730,194 27,052,777 
			 
			 Total 470,342,202 361,702,279 153,362,030

Fireworks Act

Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether she plans to carry out a further fireworks monitoring exercise between October 2004 and January 2005 to assess the effectiveness of the Fireworks Act 2003; and if she will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department will be assessing the effectiveness of regulations made under the Fireworks Act 2003 by using the following sources of information:
	The 2004 fireworks injury statistics compared to data from previous years;
	Information pertaining to retailer compliance provided by the Local Authority Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services (LACORS);
	The level of prosecutions under the legislation in conjunction with police reports on, among other things, firework misuse in the street; and
	The volume of complaints received from members of the public in relation to previous years.
	Using this data, the effectiveness of regulations will be better judged after the fireworks season 2004 and new year festivities of 2004–05.

Friction Dynamex

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answers of 13 January 2004, Official Report, column 694W, on debarred directors, and column 706W, on Strikes (Dismissal), if she will disqualify Mr. J. Davies of Friction Dynamex as a company director.

Gerry Sutcliffe: An insolvency practitioner appointed to an insolvent company—which is one that has entered insolvent liquidation, administration, or administrative receivership—has a duty to report to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on the conduct of the directors of that company. This report is usually submitted to The Insolvency Service within six months of the insolvency practitioner's appointment. Once the report has been received it is reviewed by The Insolvency Service to ascertain whether disqualification proceedings are in the public interest.
	In the case of Friction Dynamics Ltd.—the company to which it is presumed then question relates—no report has yet been received from the insolvency practitioner appointed.
	The Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 applies only to directors of a company. Therefore unless an individual can be shown to have been a director or to have acted as a director of a company in insolvency proceedings, they cannot be disqualified under this Act. Mr. J. Davies is not shown as a director of Friction Dynamics Ltd. but is believed to be a former employee.

Germany

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with her German counterpart regarding the labour practices of the UK subsidiaries of (a) Deutsche Telekom AG and (b) other companies where the German Government retains controlling or significant shareholdings.

Gerry Sutcliffe: All UK subsidiaries of foreign-owned companies are subject to UK labour law. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has not had discussions with her German counterpart regarding the labour practices of UK subsidiaries of any company where the German Government retains significant shareholdings. However, the managing director of T-Mobile has been invited to meet with me as Minister responsible for Employment Relations to discuss the recent union recognition discussions at the company.

Home Security Systems

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to prevent companies installing home security systems from falsely claiming that their systems are approved by the police or that their work is being carried out in conjunction with the police or the local authority.

Gerry Sutcliffe: It is an offence under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 to make false claims about goods or services being supplied in the course of business. This includes false statements, about goods being tested or approved by any person, or about services being examined, approved or evaluated by any person. Local Authority Trading Standards Departments are responsible for enforcing the Act.

Honduras

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what quantitative assessment she has made of the effect of the opening 10 years ago of the market in Honduras to subsidised rice imports from the United States on (a) the economy and (b) living standards in Honduras.

Mike O'Brien: None.

Internet Usage

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of (a) under 15-year-olds, (b) 15 to 24-year-olds, (c) 25 to 34-year-olds, (d) 35 to 44-year-olds, (e) 45 to 54-year-olds, (f) 55 to 64-year-olds and (g) over 65-year-olds are regular users of the internet.

Douglas Alexander: I have been asked to reply.
	58 per cent. of the adult population are now regular users of the internet compared to 40 per cent. in October 2000. The figures in the table from the National Statistics Omnibus survey show adults in Great Britain who had accessed the internet in the three months prior to interview in October 2003. They are broken down by age group as follows:
	
		
			 Age in years Percentage 
		
		
			 16 to 24 88 
			 25 to 44 76 
			 45 to 54 64 
			 55 to 64 45 
			 65 and over 16 
		
	
	Full results are available at www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/intc1203.pdf
	While the ONS Omnibus survey only focuses on those over 16, DfES commission a 'young people and ICT' survey each year. The latest results, from a survey in Autumn 2002 found that 84 per cent. of 5 to 18-year-olds use the internet. Full results are available at www.becta.org.uk.

Miners' Compensation

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what procedure is in place to pay the British Coal component part of miners' health compensation claims in cases where negotiations are continuing with private small mines; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Griffiths: The procedures in place are that the Department is making interim payments—of 75 per cent. of the estimated share of general damages payable by British Coal—to claimants who have worked for both British Coal and a small private mine, where no other interims have been paid previously. The first of these interim payments was made in December 2003. Where an interim payment has been paid previously—for example, on the basis that the claimant has previously received a DWP payment for respiratory disease—the Department will reassess the claim after having completed interim payments to those claimants who have received no payments, and will ensure that compensation is topped up to the equivalent of 75 per cent. of estimated British Coal share of general damages.

Miners' Compensation

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made in settling chest disease claims from mineworkers who worked (a) in dirty surface environments and (b) underground only for short periods.

Nigel Griffiths: Claimants who worked underground for short periods are already eligible to claim compensation for respiratory disease under the Claims Handling Agreement (CHA).
	With regard to discussions on surface dusty workers and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the Judge has instructed the claimants' solicitors' co-ordinating group (CG) to identify lead claimants and to investigate their medical circumstances and dust exposure. The Department is assisting the CG in this process by giving access to British Coal dust records. The CG are to report back to the Judge in February.
	The Department and the CG are also in discussions about allowing surface only workers to claim for chronic bronchitis (CB) and temporary exacerbation of asthma (TEA), on the basis of proposals made by the Department to the CG. Any arrangement relating to claims for COPD, CB or TEA for surface workers would not be subject to the cut-off date agreed for the underground scheme.

Motor Industry

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the operation of the Rover Task Force.

Jacqui Smith: The Rover Task Force (RTF) was set up in 2000 to look at the potential effects on the region's economy of the then expected decline of Rover and its supply industry—which was a severe risk at the time of the BMW withdrawal from the company. The report it produced has been carried forward primarily by Advantage West Midlands (the RDA). It remains one of the best examples of speedy response to a crisis coupled with long-term action to address structural change.
	There are three themes arising from the RTF:
	Modernisation—support to the automotive supply chain in its continuous improvement activity;
	Diversification—promotion of and support to encourage businesses to engage in new activity to enable the region to be less dependent on its traditional industries; and
	Regeneration—the creation of High Tech Corridors to support the modernisation and diversification of the region's economy by attracting and developing more high tech, high value added businesses by virtue of the presence of research institutions, universities and property opportunities.
	Modernisation and Diversification projects are continuing with spend on target and outputs exceeding or in line with expectations. For example, at end of 2002–03 over 2,500 jobs have been safeguarded against a target of 1,700. Equally on the Regeneration agenda, a strategy is in place for High Tech Corridors to provide long-term sustainable development of the region.

Museums (Genetic Research)

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the research that has been carried out following studies of genetic materials held in British museums.

Patricia Hewitt: Museums hold a great deal of material that could be classed as genetic material: from human, animal or insect remains to collections of seeds and plants samples, even marine sediments contain genetic material which could be used in research.
	There are many of possible funders including the Government Departments, devolved Administrations, Research Councils, universities, charities and the museums themselves. There is no central record of all the research funded by these different bodies or of the research carried out on the different sources of genetic material and it would be cost prohibitive to gather it.

National Business Angels Network

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what sums of money put into the National Business Angels Network have been written off.

Nigel Griffiths: None.

Project Funding

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what funding has been provided by her Department to help finance (a) the Passport to Export Success scheme, (b) the Overseas Project Fund, (c) the British Overseas Industrial Placement, (d) the Outward Missions Support Unit, (e) inward trade missions, (f) the Export Promoter Initiatives, (g) the Export Marketing Research Initiative, (h) the Export Communications Review, (i) the Framework Programme 6 and (j) the Link Collaborative Research Initiative for each financial year since the inception of each; what funding has been allocated to finance each in future financial years; and if she will estimate the extent to which businesses have benefited from each initiative to date.

Patricia Hewitt: The schemes at (a) to (h) are administered by UK Trade and Investment (a joint FCO/DTI Department), and those at (i) and (j) by the Office of Science and Technology (OST) at the DTI.
	The funding figures available for UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) trade support schemes, and projected funding, are as follows.
	(a) to (h): Funding details for UK Trade and Investment trade support schemes:
	Since 2001, funding has been provided to the schemes as follows:
	
		£ million
		
			Outturn Est. outturn  Plans 
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			  
			  
			 (a) Passport to Export (14)0 2.1 3.6 5.5 5.0 5.0 
			 (b) Overseas Project Fund 2.1 2.9 2.4 2.5 2.3 0.7 
			 (c) British Ovs. Industrial Placement Scheme (BOND) 0.28 0.3 0.3 0.3 0 0 
			 (d) Outward Missions Scheme(15) 1.9 2.1 2.2 2.2 2.2 2.3 
			 (e) Inward Missions Scheme 0.3 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 
			 (f) Export Promoters Scheme 4.4 3.0 2.6 2.6 2.8 2.9 
			 (g) Export Market Research Initiative 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 
			 (h) Export Communications Review 0.15 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
		
	
	(14) Scheme under development.
	(15) Vertical missions will be subsumed into the Support for Exhibitions and Seminars Abroad (SESA) scheme as of 1 April 2004.
	The BOND scheme at (c) ends in March 2004.
	The support provided by UK Trade and Investment helps businesses to trade successfully in international markets. Those that do so are shown by independent research to be more productive, to pay higher wages and to be more capital intensive than those that do not. The current formal evaluation of the benefits to business from UKTI trade schemes is contained in UKTI's (then British Trade International) Departmental Report (Cm 5915) of May 2003, and in the Autumn Performance Report (Cm 5711) of December 2003, copies of which are in the Libraries of the House. Details of UKTI's 2003–04 performance measurement will be available in late February 2004, and will be included in UKTI's Departmental Report to be published in April 2004.
	(i) the Framework Programme 6
	The EU's Framework Programmes are funded from the EU budget, not DTI. The current budget for the period 2002 to 2006 is Euro17.5 billion. The programme supports a range of activities including collaborative research and technological development, researcher mobility, scientific infrastructure and co-ordination of national research funding. The Government's Memorandum and response to the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee inquiry (UK Science and Europe: Value for Money?) in 2003 outlined evidence for the benefit to the UK. The Government are examining these issues further in preparation for negotiation of the next programme. UK businesses benefit from participation in the programme in terms of funding, gaining access to European markets and researchers and participation/risk sharing in R&D on cutting edge technologies.
	(j) the Link Collaborative Research Initiative
	My Department has funded the LINK Collaborative Research scheme as follows:
	
		£000
		
			  DTI Research Councils Total 
		
		
			 1988–97 cumulative 86,873.5 70,369.1 157,242.6 
			 1997–98 11,690.5 13,004.7 24,695.2 
			 1998–99 9,498.1 20,307.3 29,805.4 
			 1999–2000 7,475.1 21,968.2 29,443.3 
			 2000–01 7,330.4 23,403.7 30,734.1 
			 2001–02 9,887.6 23,656.3 33,543.9 
			 2002–03 12,662.1 21,013.2 33,675.3 
			 Total to 2002–03 145,417.3 193,722.5 33,9139.8 
		
	
	No specific funding amount is allocated for future years but follows the assessment of proposals for LINK Collaborative Research programmes.
	Fourteen Government Departments and Research Councils sponsor LINK Collaborative Research. Participating businesses, which provide at least matching support for all Government funding, benefit from involvement in the scheme in a variety of ways. The report of a recent independent Strategic Review of LINK Collaborative Research included estimates of the economic benefits of LINK projects to UK business as follows.
	Extra business turnover: £700 million-£2,400 million 1
	Increased profit: £250 million-£500 million 1
	Increased employment: 15,000–25,000 posts 1
	1 Figures are low and high estimates for the direct effect of LINK Collaborative Research on the UK economy to 2000–01.

Relocation Offshore

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what research has been undertaken by her Department on consumer attitudes to locating call centre jobs and services offshore;
	(2)  what research has been undertaken by her Department to assess the regional impact of locating services and jobs offshore.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 22 January 2004
	My Department has not undertaken any research specifically on consumer attitudes to offshoring call centre jobs and services. The DTI paper "Services and Offshoring: The Impact of Increasing International Competition on Services", published on 5 December, outlined the main issues on offshoring and highlights initial areas identified for further research. It invites all those with an interest in the wider offshoring debate, including businesses, employees and their unions, and consumer groups, to share their views with us. On 2 February I will be hosting a roundtable on offshoring with companies and organisations interested in offshoring issues. My Department is also commissioning research on the key factors contributing to the relative competitiveness of the UK's call centre industry to help identify any appropriate actions which need to be taken by industry or Government in response to the increasingly global market for call centre services.

Relocation Offshore

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what research has been (a) commissioned and (b) undertaken by her Department to assess the economic costs and benefits to the labour market, in particular to women, of UK call centre jobs being located offshore;
	(2)  what research her Department has undertaken into whether costs savings are achieved by those UK companies who have located jobs abroad; and whether cost savings are passed on to the consumer;
	(3)  what assessment has been made by her Department of (a) the long-term trends in moving UK jobs and services abroad and (b) the benefits derived by UK manufacturing, utilities and financial services;
	(4)  if she will make a statement on the effect of offshoring jobs abroad on UK trade and industry;
	(5)  what assessment has been made of the quality of customer service achieved by those companies which have offshored jobs abroad; and how customer service has changed.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 22 January 2004
	My Department has not commissioned or undertaken any research on the specific issue of economic costs and benefits to the labour market, in particular to women, of UK call centre jobs being located offshore. My Department is commissioning a study on the key factors contributing to the relative competitiveness of the UK's call centre industry. The study will help to identify any appropriate actions that need to be taken by industry or Government in response to the increasingly global market for call centre services.

Relocation Offshore

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will publish her Department's study into offshoring of UK call centre jobs.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The study will examine the key factors contributing to the relative competitiveness of UK call centres including the impact of offshoring. Subject to progress of the study, we will publish a report on its findings in April 2004.

Renewable Energy (Cambridgeshire)

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will publish a list of pending applications for windfarm developments in Cambridgeshire, giving their (a) location and (b) proposed output in KW hours.

Stephen Timms: Proposals to construct and operate generating stations with a capacity greater than 50 megawatts (MW) require my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's consent under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989.
	There are no applications for her consent to construct windfarms in Cambridgeshire.
	Central Government does not hold records of proposals for on-shore windfarms below 50MW as these fall to be determined by the local planning authority under the normal planning regime.

Strategic Export Controls (Israel)

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what approvals have been given since the period covered by the last Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls for the export to Israel of categories of equipment covering (a) leg irons, (b) electric shock belts, (c) tear gas, (d) mortars, (e) rocket launchers, (f) anti-tank weapons, (g) military explosives, (h) infra- red and radar sensors and (i) chemical and biological agents.

Nigel Griffiths: Details of export licences approved for Israel in 2003 will be published in the 2003 Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls later this year. I can however confirm that, following the then Foreign Secretary's announcement in 1997 of a ban on the export and transhipment through the UK of equipment which has been shown to be used for torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment, items such as leg irons and electric shock belts are never approved for export from the UK. Similarly, in 2003 the Government did not authorise tear gas for export to Israel.

Wind Farms

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list applications for wind farm developments in Lancashire, broken down by (a) location and (b) output in kw per hour.

Stephen Timms: Proposals to construct and operate generating stations with a capacity greater than 50 megawatts (MW) require the Secretary of State's consent under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989.
	She is currently considering one application for her consent to construct a 65 MW wind farm at Scout Moor. The applicant estimates that the on site wind analysis indicates a likely capacity factor of 35 per cent. which would indicate that the proposed wind farm would generate some 197,000,000 kWh per annum.
	Central Government do not hold records of proposals for on shore wind farms at or below 50 MW as they fall to be determined by the local planning authority under the normal planning regime.

Transdepartmental Science and Technology Group

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will break down how funding for knowledge transfer programmes was allocated in 2003–04; and what amounts were allocated in each year since 1997.

Patricia Hewitt: The information is as follows:
	
		£ million
		
			  1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 Science Enterprise Challenge 25 — — 5 10 — — 
			 University Challenge 10 10 20 5 — — — 
			 Higher Education Innovation Fund (OST) — — 20 20 40 61 70 
			 Higher Education Innovation Fund (DfES) — — — — 20 20 20 
			 Public Sector Research Establishment — — 10 — — 5 10 
			 Total 35 10 50 30 70 86 100 
		
	
	There was no expenditure prior to 1999, as the first of these programmes were announced in the pre-Budget statement November 1998. The Higher Education Innovation Fund is run jointly with DfES and their contributions have been included in the table. A number of other DTI initiatives contribute to knowledge transfer, but are recorded under separate headings in DTI's annual report.

Work-Life Balance

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when the full report on the Work-Life Balance survey will be published.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Second Work-Life Balance Study: Results from the Employers' Survey report was published in November 2003 and can be found at www.dti.gov.uk/er/infomr.htm. The accompanying employee survey report will be published in spring 2004, although preliminary findings can be found at www.dti.gov.uk/er/emar/wibstwo employee.pdf.

Work-Life Balance

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the level of discrimination against pregnant women in the workplace.

Patricia Hewitt: There has been no formal assessment of the level of discrimination against pregnant women in the workplace. However, the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) launched a formal investigation into pregnancy discrimination on 1 September 2003 using its powers under the Sex Discrimination Act 1975. The final report is expected in February 2005.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Council Tax Benefit

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he plans to take (a) to make council tax benefit more accessible for pensioners through (i) a simpler benefit and (ii) simpler claim forms and (b) to ensure effective administration of the benefit; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Pond: We have recently introduced a single, streamlined, claim form for claiming both housing benefit and council tax benefit; we are now rolling out a shortened version for pensioners, which will simplify the claims process even further.
	On-going practical support to local authorities is being provided through the Help Team, monitoring teams, and the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate to help remove barriers to poor performance. We are maintaining the investment in the Performance Standards Fund over this and the next two years, amounting to some £200 million over all.
	From 1 April 2004, we are abolishing the current restriction whereby people living in band F, G or H properties have their council tax benefit restricted to the maximum help available for band E properties.
	In addition we will be taking forward the council tax benefit take-up campaign, which was announced on 15 December 2003, to support authorities in ensuring that those entitled to help with their council tax bills claim council tax benefit.

Stakeholder Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the average level of employer contributions, net of tax relief, into stakeholder pension schemes since their introduction.

Malcolm Wicks: Inland Revenue data show that in 2001–02 the average contribution to stakeholder pension schemes made by employers was £420 per annum.
	This figure represents the average contribution for the financial year 2001–02 to schemes where an employer is contributing. The data are for the full year and does not include a scheme start date, so where a scheme was started in-year, although the contributions would only have been made for part of the year they have been averaged over 12 months. Therefore the estimate will not reflect the true annual average if the scheme had operated for a full year.
	At present comparable figures for subsequent years are not yet available as although we have data on total contributions made and number of schemes receiving tax relief, data showing the schemes which received employer contributions has not yet been released; data for 2002–03 will become available in summer 2004.
	Between 2001–02 and 2002–03 total contributions to stakeholder schemes by employers have risen by 267 per cent. from £150 million per annum to £400 million per annum.

Advice Organisations

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the overlap between existing Citizens Advice Bureaux and the new advice-based organisations funded by his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Pond: Our Agencies provide advice to people on those areas for which this Department is responsible, ensuring that people understand their rights and responsibilities within the benefit system, the benefits that they are entitled to, the job opportunities open to them, and what services are available to improve their job prospects. However, we do not give the broad range of advice that is available from Citizens Advice Bureaux.
	In some cases, the best way to provide our services is in conjunction with other organisations within the community. For example, Jobcentre Plus is working with Cornwall Neighbourhoods for Change on its Neighbourhood Pathway project. It is providing its knowledge and skills in helping people back in to work, and has invested £883,890 during the period April 2003 to December 2003, supporting 420 people into work and 320 people into training and mainstream Jobcentre Plus programmes.

Benefit Payments (Computer Downtime)

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many hours of system downtime relating to the computer dealing with direct payment there have been in each month since it was introduced.

Chris Pond: holding answer 13 January 2004
	Information is not available in the format requested.
	The Department has contingency arrangements in place to maintain continuity of benefit payment, in the unlikely event of benefit system failure.
	The figures for Service Availability across all Departmental Systems over the past 6 months has been 99.98 per cent. Availability has not dipped under the 99.2 per cent. target over the past year.

Carers Allowance

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people (a) over and (b) under 65 were entitled to carers allowance but did not receive payment in each (i) constituency and (ii) local authority area in London in the last year for which figures are available.

Maria Eagle: Information on people in London local authorities who are entitled to Carers Allowance but are not receiving a payment due to the overlapping benefit rules, as at 31 August 2003, the latest data available is given in the table.
	
		
			 Local Authority All Under 65 65 and over 
		
		
			 All 9,695 4,625 5,070 
			 
			 City of London 5 — — 
			 Barking and Dagenham 365 170 195 
			 Barnet 365 185 185 
			 Bexley 355 150 205 
			 Brent 300 150 155 
			 Bromley 370 190 180 
			 Camden 230 110 120 
			 Croydon 395 190 205 
			 Ealing 345 175 170 
			 Enfield 325 155 170 
			 Greenwich 525 190 335 
			 Hackney 275 135 140 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 180 95 85 
			 Haringey 240 125 115 
			 Harrow 225 105 120 
			 Havering 520 205 315 
			 Hillingdon 370 175 190 
			 Hounslow 325 145 180 
			 Islington 280 135 145 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 85 35 50 
			 Kingston upon Thames 135 60 75 
			 Lambeth 280 145 135 
			 Lewisham 350 170 180 
			 Merton 215 90 120 
			 Newham 395 220 180 
			 Redbridge 380 200 180 
			 Richmond upon Thames 155 70 85 
			 Southwark 315 165 150 
			 Sutton 260 115 145 
			 Tower Hamlets 310 155 150 
			 Waltham Forest 325 160 165 
			 Wandsworth 340 160 180 
			 Westminster 165 95 70 
		
	
	Information on people in London Parliamentary Constituencies who are entitled to Carers Allowance but are not receiving a payment due to the overlapping benefit rules, as at 31 August 2003, the latest data available is given in the table.
	
		
			 Parliamentary Constituency All Under 65 65 and over 
		
		
			 All 9,695 4,625 5,070 
			 
			 Barking 180 90 90 
			 Battersea 100 45 60 
			 Beckenham 105 50 55 
			 Bethnal Green and Bow 170 80 90 
			 Bexleyheath and Crayford 155 65 90 
			 Brent East 95 50 45 
			 Brent North 110 55 55 
			 Brent South 95 45 50 
			 Brentford and Isleworth 150 70 80 
			 Bromley and Chislehurst 115 60 55 
			 Camberwell and Peckham 110 60 50 
			 Carshalton and Wallington 145 60 85 
			 Chingford and Woodford Green 140 55 85 
			 Chipping Barnet 115 60 55 
			 Cities of London and Westminster 70 35 30 
			 Croydon Central 140 65 75 
			 Croydon North 145 75 75 
			 Croydon South 110 55 55 
			 Dagenham 185 80 105 
			 Dulwich and West Norwood 105 60 50 
			 Haling Acton and Shepherds Bush 110 55 55 
			 Ealing North 135 70 65 
			 Ealing Southall 160 85 75 
			 East Ham 160 85 75 
			 Edmonton 125 60 60 
			 Eltham 205 60 145 
			 Enfield North 95 50 45 
			 Enfield Southgate 105 40 65 
			 Erith and Thamesmead 185 85 100 
			 Feltham and Heston 170 70 100 
			 Finchley and Golders Green 110 55 55 
			 Greenwich and Woolwich 205 75 125 
			 Hackney North and Stoke Newington 110 50 60 
			 Hackney South and Shoreditch 165 85 80 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 125 65 60 
			 Hampstead and Highgate 95 40 50 
			 Harrow East 130 65 65 
			 Harrow West 95 40 55 
			 Hayes and Harlington 115 70 45 
			 Hendon 140 70 70 
			 Holborn and St. Pancras 135 65 70 
			 Hornchurch 180 80 100 
			 Hornsey and Wood Green 90 45 45 
			 llford North 180 95 90 
			 llford South 145 85 60 
			 Islington North 150 65 85 
			 Islington South and Finsbury 130 70 60 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 35 15 20 
			 Kingston and Surbiton 110 45 60 
			 Lewisham Deptford 100 55 45 
			 Lewisham East 130 55 75 
			 Lewisham West 120 60 60 
			 Leyton and Wanstead 120 55 65 
			 Mitcham and Morden 130 60 70 
			 North Southwark and Bermondsey 145 75 70 
			 Old Bexley and Sidcup 130 50 80 
			 Orpington 150 75 75 
			 Poplar and Canning Town 210 120 90 
			 Putney 105 50 55 
			 Regents Park and Kensington North 145 80 70 
			 Richmond Park 80 35 40 
			 Romford 145 55 90 
			 Ruislip Northwood 130 55 75 
			 Streatham 110 60 45 
			 Sutton and Cheam 115 55 60 
			 Tooting 130 65 65 
			 Tottenham 150 75 70 
			 Twickenham 100 45 55 
			 Upminster 200 75 125 
			 Uxbridge 125 55 70 
			 Vauxhall 120 55 65 
			 Walthamstow 125 70 55 
			 West Ham 160 90 70 
			 Wimbledon 85 35 50 
		
	
	Note:
	Figures are rounded to the nearest 5, totals may not sum due to founding
	Source:
	IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. sample
	The following table contains the figures for the number of people who have an entitlement to Carers Allowance but do not receive it due to overlapping benefit rules, but receive a Carer Premium 1 .
	1 The carer premium is intended to focus help on those who have limited opportunity to gain income from work because of providing care for a person with disabilities. It is awarded where the carer receives Carer's Allowance or has an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance. The premium is paid in addition to other benefits and premiums, and where both the claimant and their partner satisfy the conditions, two carer premiums are paid.
	The figures include Minimum Income Guarantee (MIG) data. They include all IS (over and under 60s) and JSA(IB) cases with a carer premium but with no CA. From October 2003, Pension Credit replaced Income Support for people over 60. The Pension Credit calculation for people who are entitled to Carer's Allowance includes an additional amount equal to the carer premium in Income Support.
	
		Thousands
		
			  Total 
		
		
			 All 50.6 
			 Under 65 24.7 
			 65 and Over 26.0 
		
	
	Notes
	1. Figures are based on a 5 per cent sample and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation.
	2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred and are expressed in thousands. Totals do not sum due to rounding.
	3. Income-based JSA will include those receiving Income-based JSA with an underlying entitlement to Contribution-based JSA.
	4. There is an equivalent premium called the Additional Amount in Pension Credit. There are no data available on this as yet.
	Source:
	IAD Information Centre, 5 per cent. sample.

Child Support Agency

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what powers the Child Support Agency has in making deductions from earnings orders against army personnel.

Chris Pond: None. However, the Agency can ask Her Majesty's forces to use their discretionary powers to make deductions from the pay of Service personnel.

Child Support Agency

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps are taken by the Child Support Agency to verify the financial status of a resident parent who has a new unmarried partner in cases where the non-resident parent has applied for departures in CSA maintenance.

Chris Pond: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr. Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	Letter from Doug Smith to John Barrett, dated 26 January 2004
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary questions about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked what steps are taken by the Child Support Agency to verify the financial status of a resident parent, who has a new unmarried partner, in cases where the non-resident parent has applied for departures in CSA maintenance.
	In all cases falling under the "old scheme" where the resident parent (that is, the parent with care) is not receiving a prescribed benefit or Tax Credit, the Agency will seek to verify that parent's financial circumstances. Specifically we will ask the parent with care for evidence of their earnings and any other income, as well as their housing costs. We will do this whether or not the parent with care has a partner and whether or not the non-resident parent has applied for a departure.
	It may help you to know that, under the "old scheme", if the parent with care has a partner, the Agency will ask for verification of that partner's income only if they share a child. This is because the only relevance of the partner's income is in determining whether we should make full allowance for the shared child in the parent with care's exempt income, or whether the partner can contribute to the support of the child. Under the revised Child Support scheme the Agency does not take into account the financial circumstances of the parent with care in any way.

Child Support Agency

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the projected date is for moving all existing child support cases to the new computer system.

Chris Pond: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Castle Point (Bob Spink) on 18 December 2003, Official Report, column 1092W.

Disability Living Allowance

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of applicants for disability living allowance assessed by a Benefits Agency Medical Service doctor were (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful in their applications in 2003.

Maria Eagle: The numbers of DLA New Claim decisions made, which have included an Examining Medical Practitioner's Report as part of the evidence used, are set out in the following table.
	
		January-November 2003
		
			  Number (percentage) 
		
		
			 Total decisions including an EMP report in the evidence used 126,760 
			 Awards 56,780(45) 
			 Refusals 69,980 (55) 
		
	
	Note:
	Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
	Source:
	100 per cent. MIS data
	Figures include awards made as a result of new claims only. Figures are for January to November 2003 as December 2003 figures are not yet available.

Incapacity Benefit

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to review the requirement for persons who have (a) chronic mental health problems and (b) chronic physical conditions to undergo (i) IB50 and (ii) personal capability assessment.

Maria Eagle: The Personal Capability Assessment, which includes completion of IB50 self-assessment where relevant, is an effective method of determining a person's functional ability.
	The IB50 self-assessment questionnaire has been designed to give people the opportunity to provide information about their problems, mental or physical, that they feel the decision maker should take into account in relation to functional assessment.
	People with a severe mental illness are exempt from the Personal Capability Assessment, and procedures have been developed so that people who meet the exemption criteria are identified at the earliest possible stage. Any cause of incapacity which may include a mental health problem triggers a request for a report from the person's GP or medical specialist. People who are exempt are not required to complete a self-assessment IB50.
	We have no plans to change these arrangements at present.

Incapacity Benefit

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to improve access for incapacity benefit claimants to personal capability assessment tests by introducing peripatetic surgeries in rural areas.

Maria Eagle: Under the contract for provision of Medical Services, SchlumbergerSema must ensure that customers are not required to travel for more than ninety minutes by public transport, on a single journey, for an examination, unless previously agreed with the customer; SchlumbergerSema will pay all reasonable and actual expenses to customers who attend for an examination and apply for reimbursement.
	Information leaflets are provided to customers, advising them to contact the Client Help desk if they expect to experience difficulties in travelling to the Medical Examination Centre. Under certain circumstances, SchlumbergerSema will authorise the refund of taxi fares if agreed in advance with the Client Help desk; domiciliary visits can also be arranged, where it is determined that a customer is unable to travel on medical grounds.
	We have no plans to change these arrangements at present.

Incapacity Benefit

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many appeal tribunal decisions on incapacity benefit appeals have been challenged by social security offices in (a) Scotland and (b) the rest of the United Kingdom in each of the last two years; and how many challenges were successful in each case.

Maria Eagle: Decisions of tribunals may be appealed on a point of law to Social Security Commissioners. The numbers of tribunal decisions appealed in incapacity benefit cases in the last two years are in the tables.
	
		Tribunal decisions on incapacity benefit appealed by the Secretary of State on a point of law during 2002
		
			  Scotland Elsewhere in the UK 
		
		
			 Decisions appealed 7 11 
			 Successful 7 8 
			 Unsuccessful 0 3 
		
	
	
		Tribunal decisions on incapacity benefit appealed by the Secretary of State on a point of law during 2003
		
			  Scotland Elsewhere in the UK 
		
		
			 Decisions appealed 11 34 
			 Successful 5 13 
			 Unsuccessful(16) 1 6 
			 Result awaited 5 15 
		
	
	(16) Figure for elsewhere in the UK includes one appeal withdrawn.
	Note:
	Successful appeals include decisions set aside by a tribunal chairman and those found by a Social Security Commissioner to be erroneous in law.

New Deal

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have taken part in the New Deal for Musicians in each year of the programme's existence.

Des Browne: The information requested is in the table.
	
		Number of participants in New Deal of Musicians
		
			 Year Total in year 
		
		
			 1999 1,515 
			 2000 3,484 
			 2001 4,015 
			 2002 2,859 
			 2003(17) 1,590 
			 Total 13,463 
		
	
	(17) Up to 28 August 2003
	Source
	New Deal for Musicians Database

New Deal

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) his Department and (b) JobCentrePlus are employed in administering the New Deal for Musicians.

Des Browne: There is no separate administrative resource allocated specifically to New Deal for Musicians as it is delivered as part of the wider New Deal for Young People and New Deal 25 plus.

New Deal

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have been placed in sustainable employment by the New Deal for Musicians; and what percentage that represents of the total number of people taking part in the programme.

Des Browne: Since November 2002 New Deal for musicians has been adopted as part of the mainstream New Deals; New Deal for young People and New Deal 25plus. The successful job outcomes of New Deal for Musicians therefore contribute to the total data of those two programmes as appropriate.
	Separate statistical information on the number of New Deal for Musicians participants finding sustainable jobs is not available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

New Deal

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the annual cost is of the New Deal for Musicians (a) this year and (b) for each year of the programme's existence.

Des Browne: The estimated cost of the three year New Deal for Musicians national pilot was £9 million. Annual costs are not available for this period. The spend on New Deal for Musicians for 2002–03 is £3.1 million and 2003–04, to December 2003, is £2 million.

Occupational Pension Schemes

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance he has issued to (a) the trustees and (b) the administrators of occupational pension schemes where, on winding-up, the remaining assets of the scheme are insufficient to cover SERPS liabilities for some members.

Malcolm Wicks: Section 74 of the Pensions Act 1995 sets out the provisions on overriding scheme rules so as to enable the trustees of a scheme to discharge their liabilities to members for pensions and other benefits even if the those pensions and benefits are not fully secured. When an occupational pension scheme is winding up, it ceases to contract-out and its trustees must secure members contracted-out rights.
	The Inland Revenue manual CA15 (Cessation of Contracted-out Pension Schemes) contains guidance on securing contracted-out rights. CA15 is available via the Inland Revenue website at: www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk. Inland Revenue writes to scheme administrators making them aware of the guidance once the scheme has ceased to contract-out. Also, when they are informed that a scheme is no longer contracted-out, the Inland Revenue sends form CA7992 to scheme trustees. This gives general guidelines on securing the liabilities, and the options that are available.
	No guidance has been issued by the Department for Work and Pensions on this subject.

Pension Credit

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of pensioners from (a) the UK, (b) Scotland and (c) Dumfries have received pension credit since its introduction.

Malcolm Wicks: The information requested is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is given in the table based on numbers of pension credit recipients in Great Britain, Scotland and Dumfries and Galloway.
	
		Recipients of pension credit, 31 December 2003
		
			  Numbers of pension credit recipients Percentage of population aged 60 and over (percentage) 
		
		
			 Great Britain 2,533,960 21.1 
			 Scotland 263,290 24.5 
			 Dumfries and Galloway 8,615 22.5 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 5.
	2. Percentages have been calculated using the ONS population estimates for mid 2002.
	3. Figures for recipients include a small number of partners under age 60.

Pension Credit

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the overall sum paid to pensioners under the pension credit scheme is to date in (a) England, (b) Cambridgeshire and (c) Huntingdon.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is not available in the format requested. The information that is available is as follows.
	The latest departmental information suggests that between 1 October 2003 and 30 November 2003:
	An estimated £688 million was spent on Pension Credit in England;
	An estimated £5.0 million was spent on Pension Credit in Cambridgeshire;
	An estimated £0.7 million was spent on Pension Credit in Huntingdon.
	Notes:
	1. Pension Credit was introduced on 6 October 2003, therefore this figure includes 5 days of expenditure on the Minimum Income Guarantee (the benefit Pension Credit replaces).
	2. This figure is based on total expenditure on Pension Credit in Great Britain (GB) from the departmental Programme Accounting Computer System (PACS) data. The country, county and constituency level expenditure is estimated using 100 per cent. Generalised Matching Service (GMS) data.
	3. The estimate for England has been rounded to the nearest million pounds.
	4. The estimates for Cambridgeshire and Huntingdon have been rounded to the nearest £100,000.

Pension Credit

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people resident in (a) the constituency of Huntingdon and (b) Cambridgeshire have received pension credit since its introduction;
	(2)  how many people resident in (a) the constituency of Huntingdon and (b) Cambridgeshire have applied for pension credit since its introduction.

Malcolm Wicks: At 31 December 2003 there were (a) 2,018 pensioner households (2,397 individuals) in the Huntingdon constituency and (b) 12,974 pensioner households (15,474 individuals) in Cambridgeshire receiving pension credit. Information on the number of people who have applied for pension credit is not available in respect of individual constituencies or counties.

Pension Credit

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of pensioners in the constituency of Huntingdon have received letters setting out their rights under the pension credit scheme.

Malcolm Wicks: Information on the number of people in individual constituencies who have received a letter about pension credit is not available.

Pension Credit

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people have claimed pension credit in Brent, East since it was introduced;
	(2)  how many people are entitled to claim pension credit in Brent, East.

Malcolm Wicks: At 31 December 2003 there were 3,205 pensioner households (3,786 individuals) in the Brent, East constituency receiving pension credit. Information on the number of people who have applied for or are eligible for pension credit is not available in respect of individual constituencies. However, we estimate that approximately 450,000 pensioner households in the London region are eligible for pension credit.

Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the (a) number and (b) percentage of working age people contributing to a non-state pension scheme.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of working age people currently contributing to a non-state pension scheme is 11.7 million.
	The percentage of working age people currently contributing to a non-state pension scheme is 36 per cent.
	Source:
	Family Resources Survey 2002–03.
	Notes:
	1. Those who are 'contributing' are members of a non-state pension schemes who are themselves currently contributing to the scheme.
	2. All figures are estimates and are taken from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). 2002–03 is the latest year for which data is available. The coverage of the Survey is the UK.
	3. Non-state pension refers to either an occupational pension or personal pension
	4. Stakeholder pensions are included as personal pensions in the estimates.
	5. Working age has been defined as 20–59 for women and 20–64 for men.
	6. Some individuals may contribute to both an occupational and a personal pension scheme but there are no overlaps. The figures include those contributing to either an occupational pension or a personal pension.

Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the (a) number and (b) percentage of working age people accumulating rights in a non-state pension scheme.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of working age people who are currently accumulating rights to a non-state pension scheme is 14.5 million
	The percentage of working age people who are currently accumulating rights to a non-state pension scheme is 44 per cent.
	Source:
	Family Resources Survey 2002–03.
	Notes:
	1. Those 'accumulating rights' includes those who are members of a non-state pension with either themselves or their employer currently contributing. The figures do not include 'deferred' pension rights as neither themselves nor their employer are currently contributing.
	2. All figures are estimates and are taken from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). 2002–03 is the latest year for which data is available. The coverage of the Survey is the UK.
	3. Non-state pension refers to either an occupational pension or personal pension
	4. Stakeholder pensions are included as personal pensions in the estimates.
	5. Working age has been defined as 20–59 for women and 20–64 for men.
	6. Some individuals may contribute to both an occupational and a personal pension scheme but there are no overlaps. The figures include those contributing to either an occupational pension or a personal pension.

Post Office Card Accounts

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what arrangements he has made for wheelchair users who cannot use their hands to collect benefits and pensions at post offices when using the new PIN card system.

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what arrangements his Department has made to help partially sighted clients with post office card accounts, who have difficulty in using a PIN number, but do not wish to nominate another person to collect their money for them, to obtain their payments from the post office branch.

Chris Pond: Our information campaign has an important role to play in the way we take customers through the changes, including collecting their money from their account at the post office if they wish. Customers will be supplied with information, which clearly sets out their 'account options' and enables them to freely choose the best account to suit their circumstances.
	For some people, a card-based account may not be the most suitable option and they may prefer to use an account with a cheque book or building society pass book. If post office access is a priority, people in these circumstances can choose one of the accounts that are accessible at post office branches.
	The Post Office is working to ensure its services are as accessible to as many customers as possible and is planning to make adjustments to the PIN pads installed in Post Office branches.
	We have always recognised that there will be some people, such as those who cannot open or manage any sort of account that we cannot pay by Direct Payment. In consultation with a range of bodies representing those affected, we are developing an exceptions method of payment to meet the needs of people in these circumstances, which will be accessible at Post Office branches.

Retirement Pension

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many claims are outstanding or not fully resolved relating to (a) the retirement pension assessment of widows and widowers, (b) the retirement pension assessment of those who have experienced divorce and (c) change of circumstances in retirement pension assessments for those already of pensionable age for (i) the most recently available month and (ii) each same month in the three previous years.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the table.
	
		Number of outstanding claims or not fully resolved
		
			  December 2003 December 2002 December 2001 December 2000 
		
		
			 (a) the RP assessment of widows and widowers 5,702 (18)— (18)— (18)— 
			 (b) the RP assessment of those who have experienced divorce 10,240 (18)— (18)— (18)— 
			 Total 15,942 10,604 4,457 3,831 
			 (c) change of circumstance in RP assessments for those already pension age (bereaved customers) 20,293 4,782 (18)— 1,825 
		
	
	(18) Not available
	Notes:
	1. Prior to December 2003 (a) and (b) RP claims were counted together.
	2. Figures relating to (c) refer to a change in entitlement for a surviving spouse when one or both in a couple are in receipt of RP and one of the couple dies. We have no figures available for (c) in relation to Dec 2001 due to changes in organisational structure. NPC deals with other changes of circumstance to RP eg increases in RP due to a change in the customer's contribution record. These changes of circumstance are not included in the figures stated against (c) in the table.

Retirement Pension

John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many retired pensioners are using (a) post offices, (b) banks and (c) building societies to receive their pension in the Easington constituency.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is not available in the format requested.
	However from information available as at 29 November 2003, in the Easington parliamentary constituency, the number of pensioners (women aged 60 and over, men aged 65 and over) who receive their state pension is given in the following table by type of method of payment.
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Total paid at a post office, by either order book or post office card account 9,038 
			 Paid direct to a bank or building society account (some of which can be accessed at post office branches) 3,685 
			 Total number of state pensioners 12,723 
		
	
	Source:
	IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. sample
	Information available does not differentiate between bank and building society account for payments direct to accounts. No information is held as to the number of pensioners who receive payments direct to a normal or basic bank or building society accounts who then collect all or part of their pension at the Post Office.
	The data exclude state pension recipients who receive state pension combined with another benefit and are paid through another benefit system.

Sema Group

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the performance of the Sema Group in its contracts to operate the Benefits Agency Medical Service.

Maria Eagle: The Department undertook a major review of the contract in 2001 as a basis for negotiating new and more stretching service level targets for the extension of the existing contract to 2005; the revised targets reflected recommendations for improvements made by the Social Security Select Committee and the Public Accounts Committee.
	There are more than 60 targets against which Medical Service's performance is measured, including targets for speed, accuracy and quality; achievement of these targets is reviewed on a monthly basis, with the vast majority being regularly met. For example, in respect of incapacity benefit examinations, the actual average clearance times target of 32 working days (from the receipt of the referral for examination from the DWP to the return of the case to the DWP) has consistently been met, with a year to date performance of 29.5 working days.
	The latest report published by the National Audit Office on 17 October 2003 recognised that there has been good progress, and significant improvements to the contracted services.

TREASURY

Bank of England

Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he last met the Governor of the Bank of England.

Ruth Kelly: Ministers and civil servants have meetings with a wide range of organisations and individuals as part of the process of policy development and analysis. As with previous Administrations it is not this Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings. All such contacts are conducted in accordance with the Ministerial Code, the Civil Service Code and Guidance for Civil Servants: Contacts with Lobbyists, as appropriate.

Civil Servants

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much space, expressed in square metres, the Department occupies for the offices of civil servants in (a) central London and (b) Greater London.

Ruth Kelly: The current space occupied by civil servants of the Treasury, the Inland Revenue and the Customs and Excise in (a) central London is 202,453 sq m and in (b) Greater London is 28,017 sq m.

Complaints

Rob Marris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of complaints to (a) the Inland Revenue, (b) HM Customs and Excise and (c) district valuers' offices receive a substantive response within 30 working days.

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue, Customs and Excise and the Valuation Office do not capture information about substantive responses within 30 working days.
	In the nine months ended 31 December 2003, the Inland Revenue provided a substantive response to 76 per cent. of complaints within 15 working days. In the same period, the Valuation Office provided a response to 74 per cent. of complaints within 20 working days. For the six months ended 30 September 2003, Customs and Excise provided a substantive response to 84 per cent. of complaints within 10 working days.

Compliance Performance Targets

James Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his answer of 15 January 2004, Official Report, columns 868–69W, on taxation adjustment, whether performance related pay has been paid as a consequence of adjustments in (a) the whole and (b) part of the Large Business Office's Compliance performance in the years 1999–2000 to 2001–02.

Dawn Primarolo: Performance assessment is not linked to nor based on the individual's contribution to yield or taxation adjustments achieved. No performance related pay was paid in consequence of the Large Business Office's performance yield figures reported above.

Compliance Performance Targets

James Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what compliance performance targets were set for the (a) Large Business Office (CT) and (b) Inland Revenue in each of the years 1998–99 to 2002–03; and on what dates these targets were set.

Dawn Primarolo: The information is as follows:
	(a) Large Business Office (LBO) compliance performance targets for 2002–03 are set out in the LBO Annual report for the year ended 31 March 2003. For 1998–99 to 2001–02 they are set out in the Board's Annual Reports for these years. These targets are agreed in January/February before the start of each financial year.
	(b) National Inland Revenue compliance performance targets for 1998–99 to 2002–03 are set out in the Board's Annual Reports for these years. These targets are agreed as part of the annual planning round.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will reply to the letter to him dated 16 October 2003 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. J. Miah.

Dawn Primarolo: Following confirmation that the letter referred to was dated 18 December, I have replied to my right hon. Friend.

Financial Services

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on financial services.

Ruth Kelly: As I set out in my written statement on 5th January 2004, Official Report, column 1, Lord Penrose delivered the report of his inquiry into Equitable Life to the Treasury on 23 December.
	I can report that Lord Penrose has also made his report available to the Serious Fraud Office; and having studied the contents of the report the Treasury has asked the Serious Fraud Office to consider a number of issues raised in the report.
	As I set out in my statement of 5 January, the Treasury intends to publish the report in full as soon as possible. I will keep the House fully informed.
	I can also confirm that, purely for the purpose of informing the Government's response on specific items of policy, relevant extracts of the report have been shown to named officials of the DTI.

Green Minister

Norman Baker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what work his Department's Green Minister has undertaken in the last three months.

John Healey: As the Treasury's Green Minister, I am committed to 'greening' the Department's operations, to integrating environmental considerations across policy areas, and to improving the economic analysis underpinning the Government's environmental initiatives.
	In the last three months, as the Treasury's Green Minister my work has included membership of the Ministerial Sub-Committee on Green Ministers and the Sustainable Development Taskforce, and meetings with representatives of non-governmental organisations and other key stakeholders on topics ranging from climate change to waste to aviation.
	I have written to senior officials responsible for sustainable development in each of the Chancellor's Departments and agencies to stress the importance attached to ensuring that appropriate priority and commitment are given to meeting the Government's sustainable development objectives and targets, and I led a meeting of the Working Group of responsible officials from across each of these Departments and agencies in October.
	In addition, the development of a range of environmental policy measures, including those announced in the pre-Budget report (PBR) on 10 December 2003 (Cm 6042), is my responsibility. The measures contributing to the Government's sustainable development strategy set out in PBR 2003 include:
	announcing plans for changes to the eligibility criteria for climate change agreements that will provide better incentives for businesses to encourage energy efficiency and scope to extend the sectors eligible;
	the extension, subject to state aid approval, of relief from levy for aggregates used in processed products and virgin aggregate in Northern Ireland;
	a proposed framework for alternative fuels including a commitment to providing three year certainty on duty differentials for all alternative fuels;
	a gradual increase in the duty rate for LPG to a level which better reflects its relative environmental benefits;
	recycling landfill tax revenues to businesses; and
	a consultation in early 2004 on tackling diffuse water pollution, including a consideration of the pros and cons of economic instruments.
	As I confirmed in reply to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Morley and Rothwell (Mr. Challen) on 13 November 2003, Official Report, column 408, all Government Departments will be required to consider sustainable development as part of the 2004 spending review process, as they were in 2002.

Information Technology

Richard Allan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the extent to which information technology procurement has improved as a result of the Gateway review process.

Paul Boateng: Quantitative assessment of the Gateway process is provided to OGC's Supervisory Board three times yearly. In addition, the National Audit Office are currently compiling details of the value for money benefits to projects of the OGC Gateway review process.
	This assessment shows that use of the OGC Gateway process leads to a significant improvement in likelihood of success for all procurement projects and programmes—including IT-enabled—and this improvement is particularly marked where the process is applied to projects or programmes in their early stages.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what section of the Inland Revenue is responsible for co-ordinating the activities of the Inland Revenue in relation to people with disabilities.

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue co-ordinates its activities in relation to people with disabilities through two sections: services for taxpayers with disabilities are co-ordinated by a team in Service Delivery; the Human Resources section co-ordinates activities and services relating to the employment of people with disabilities. The Inland Revenue also has a full time specialist disability adviser who supports both areas and works with external disability organisations.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to appoint a disabilities champion to take responsibility for the Inland Revenue's service delivery to people with disabilities.

Dawn Primarolo: A member of the Board of the Commissioner of the Inland Revenue has already been appointed as a consumer champion and as such covers a wide range of service delivery areas, including service to people with disabilities.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received in relation to the definition of an incapacitated person used in tax and VAT legislation; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The Government have received a number of representations on a wide variety of subjects, including a report from the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group on disability and the tax system, which included representations on this specific issue.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what measures are taken by the Inland Revenue to advertise home visits for those with disabilities (a) in leaflets and (b) on the Inland Revenue website.

Dawn Primarolo: Inland Revenue are currently developing a strategy to promote their home visits arrangements to the target groups that will include information on the internet and in leaflets.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Inland Revenue has a disabilities helpline; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: At present the Inland Revenue has no plans to establish a disabilities helpline. Advisers in our telephone contact centres are trained to deal with telephone calls from the full range of our taxpayers. We believe that this approach provides the flexibility to respond to the differing requirements of our taxpayers base.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether all Inland Revenue offices have textphone or similar communication aids.

Dawn Primarolo: All Inland Revenue Enquiry Offices are registered with the BTTypetalk service.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what equipment is available in Inland Revenue offices open to the public for those with hearing difficulties.

Dawn Primarolo: When last audited in early 2002, out of a total of 323 of Inland Revenue Enquiry Offices providing a face to face service, 86 per cent. had portable loop systems and 27 per cent. of them had fixed induction loop systems. We are in the process of carrying out another audit.
	In spring 2003 Inland Revenue introduced a set of national standards for their Enquiry Offices specifying that they be equipped with a fixed and portable induction loop system, and a crystal listening device. They are progressing to all of their Enquiry Centres meeting this standard.

Inland Revenue

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what training is given to frontline Inland Revenue staff in dealing with people with disabilities.

Dawn Primarolo: All new members of staff receive disability awareness material as part of the Inland Revenue's induction process.
	During the last three years over 90 per cent. of staff have received diversity awareness training which includes disability related issues.
	In addition, individual staff are nominated for training courses according to the requirements of their role and 22,752 staff have attended a training course specifically covering disability issues over the last three years.

Inward Migration

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on progress in establishing an appropriate method for measuring net migration into the UK.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mrs. Claire Curtis-Thomas, dated 26 January 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your request for a statement on progress in establishing an appropriate method for measuring net migration into the UK. (150333)
	A substantial amount of work in this area has already been completed, and a program of further work is ongoing.
	The results of the 2001 Census showed that the mid-year population estimates had over-estimated the population of the UK over the previous decade. Subsequent research showed that this was partly because net migration into the country had been over-estimated. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) made several improvements to the methodology for estimating total international migration, making fuller use of the available sources. The improved methodology was used to produce the international migration estimates for 2001, and was also applied retrospectively from 1992 onwards in order to produce revised total international migration estimates for the inter-censual decade. ONS released final revised international migration estimates for 1992–2001 in June 2003. The revised methodology was used again to produce the 2002 international migration estimates published in November 2003, which are available on the National Statistics website at the following address: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/inme1103.pdf
	It was already recognised that international migration is the hardest component of population change to measure before the results of the 2001 Census were published. A National Statistics Quality Review of international migration statistics was initiated in March 2002. This was aimed at identifying the means of making the required improvements to the reliability and comprehensiveness of international migration statistics. The National Statistics Quality Review report was published on the National Statistics website in September 2003. Following the publication of this report, ONS produced an implementation plan for taking forward the review's recommendations. This was published on the National Statistics website in January 2004. Both the review and the implementation plan are available at the following address: http://www.statistlcs.gov.uk/methods quality/quality review/population.asp
	The work outlined in the implementation plan is already underway. ONS, in conjunction with the Home Office are working to complete some of the actions identified by the end of 2004. Other actions are suitable for longer term planning, and in some cases are dependent on developments in other government departments for their successful completion.

Lamfalussy Committee of Banking Supervisors

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the announcement on 20 January about the new Lamfalussy committee of banking supervisors.

Gordon Brown: I am delighted to inform the House that on 20 January EU Finance Ministers agreed to base the new Lamfalussy committee of banking supervisors ('CEBS') in London. The equivalent committee for securities supervisors ('CESR') will continue to be based in Paris and that for insurance ('CEIOPS') will be based in Frankfurt. The location of these regulatory committees in Europe's major financial centres is a good outcome for the UK and for financial markets in the EU. This high-level committee of EU banking supervisors and central banks will be a key forum for national authorities to improve supervisory practices and advance the EU's legislative agenda. It should help ensure that more flexible EU legislation is adopted quicker, with improved consultation, transparency, and greater input from market practitioners. This should help drive forward the EU Financial Services Action Plan, providing Europe with a more dynamic, innovative, efficient and competitive financial services sector, to the benefit of consumers and businesses. The banking committee will meet at least three times a year, and should meet in London for the first time in the spring. It has already assumed its responsibilities and is currently looking to secure permanent offices in London. The committee is currently chaired by Jose Maria Roldan, Director General of the Bank of Spain, and around forty senior regulators and central bankers will participate in its meetings.

National Insurance

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the additional revenue to the Exchequer that would be generated by increasing the rate of Class 4 National Insurance contributions by 3 per cent.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the publication "Tax ready reckoner and tax reliefs, December 2003" which is available in the Library of the House and also on the Treasury website (http://www. hm-treasury.gov.Uk/media//AAB24/pbr03 trr.pdf). The figures exclude any estimate of behavioural response to the tax change.

Public Bodies

Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer who the members of National Savings and Investments were on 1 January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is.

Ruth Kelly: As of 1 January 2004, National Savings and Investments have six Executive Directors and four Non Executive Directors:
	
		
			 £000 
			 Name Term of office Salary(19) Bonus(19) 
		
		
			 Alan Cook—Chief Executive 5 years 145–150 10–15 
			 Trevor Bayley—Finance Director 5 years 115–120 10–15 
			 Steve Owen—Partnerships and Operations Director Permanent 85–90 10–15 
			 Gill Cattanach—Commercial Director Permanent 90–95 10–15 
			 Sandra Postles—HP Director Permanent 75–80 10–15 
			 John Prout—Sales Director Permanent 95–100 10–15 
			 Richard Wright—Non Executive Director and Chair of the Board 3 years 15–20 0 
			 Marie Stafford—Non Executive Director 3 years 10–15 0 
			 Paul Spencer—Non Executive Director 3 years 10–15 0 
			 Michael Medlicott—Non Executive Director 3 years 10–15 0 
		
	
	(19) As banded in our Annual Report and Accounts.

Public Service Contracts

Bob Laxton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made in the inquiry led by Mr. Alan Wood into the awarding of public service contracts in the EU; whether its remit includes awarding train franchises; and when he expects the inquiry to report.

Paul Boateng: The Review was announced in the pre-Budget report on 10 December 2003. Work has now commenced and Mr. Wood will report in Summer 2004.
	The Review's scope is all sectors covered by the EC Directives on public procurement in the fields of Services, Supplies and Works 1 .
	1 92/50/EEC, 93/36/EEC, 93/37/EEC.

Security Passes

Mark Oaten: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many security passes have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen by staff in (i) his Department and (ii) departmental agencies in the last 12 months, including the Inland Revenue and Her Majesty's Customs and Excise.

Ruth Kelly: The number of passes reported lost or stolen between 1 January and 31 December 2003 by staff and contractors in HM Treasury and departmental agencies can be found in the following table:
	
		
			 Department Lost Stolen Total 
		
		
			 HM Treasury 125 3 128 
			 HM Customs and Excise(20) 26 15 41 
			 Debt Management Office 11 0 11 
			 The Government Actuary's Department 8 0 8 
			 Inland Revenue n/a n/a n/a 
			 National Savings and Investments 13 4 17 
			 Office of Government Commerce 14 3 17 
			 OGC Buying Solutions 0 0 0 
			 Office of National Statistics 101 0 101 
			 Royal Mint(21) n/a n/a 11 
			 Valuation Office Agency 73 4 77 
		
	
	(20) HM Customs and Excise figures cover their offices nationwide, but some losses and thefts may have been dealt with locally, and not reported to Head Office.
	(21) Royal Mint do not keep separate records for losses and thefts.
	Passes are invalidated as soon as they reported missing, so they cannot be used if found. The passes do not contain information identifying them to their respective building or organisation. Staff are regularly reminded of the importance of keeping their security pass safe, through the induction programmes and security awareness publicity.

Sport, Health and Fitness

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the benefit to the UK economy of (a) professional and (b) amateur sports in (i) 2001, (ii) 2002 and (iii) 2003;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the benefit to the UK economy of the health and fitness sector in (a) 2001, (b) 2002 and (c) 2003.

Richard Caborn: I have been asked to reply.
	In June 2003, Sport England published the report, "The Value of the Sports Economy in England", which presented a summary of the value of the sports economy to the economy in England. The data in the report relates to 2000, the last year for which comprehensive data is available. The report found that sport generated more than £9.8 billion in value added to the economy in England, approximately 1.5 per cent. of total gross value added (GVA) for England. The breakdown according to sector is as follows:
	
		
			  Value added (£ million) 
		
		
			 Commercial sport 3,553 
			 Of which:  
			 Spectator sports 709 
			 Participation sports 380 
			 Retailing 966 
			 Sport-related manufacturing 840 
			 Commercial non-sport 4,226 
			 Of which:  
			 Higher education establishments 422 
			 Voluntary sector 1,215 
			 Local Government 844 
			   
			 Total 9,838

Sports Clubs

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the financial benefit to amateur sports of setting the thresholds at which community clubs are exempt from corporation tax at £50,000;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the financial benefit to amateur sports of mandatory rate relief at 80 per cent. for registered community amateur sports clubs.

John Healey: The doubling of the corporation tax exemption thresholds for community amateur sports clubs will remove the requirement to complete an annual tax return for eligible clubs enabling them to concentrate on the development of their clubs. The financial benefit to amateur sport clubs will depend on the financial circumstances of each club.
	The financial benefits of mandatory rates relief for registered community amateur sports clubs will depend upon the size and structure of each club and whether it previously received discretionary rates relief from its local authority.

Standard Life

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations his Department has received from policy holders regarding the future of Standard Life.

Ruth Kelly: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Preseli Pembrokeshire (Mrs. Lawrence) on 13 January 2004, Official Report, columns 634–35W. The Financial Services Authority has regulatory responsibility for Standard Life. I understand that no Standard Life policy holders have made representations to the Treasury concerning the future of Standard Life.

Tax Collection

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff are employed by the Inland Revenue to administer the collection of unpaid tax. [R]

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue's Receivables Management Service is responsible for the collection of unpaid tax and national insurance. As at 1 January 2004 the Receivables Management Service had 5,800 staff directly employed in collection of tax and national insurance.

Tax Credits

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the most recent standard mailing issued to all tax credits recipients by the Inland Revenue.

Dawn Primarolo: A copy of the most recent general mailing to tax credits recipients, the first issue of Tax Credits Update, has been placed in the Library of the House.

Tax Credits

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the child elements of Jobseeker's Allowance and Income Support will transfer to Child Tax Credit payments; and whether modifications to the new tax credits IT system will be needed to facilitate the transfer.

Dawn Primarolo: I will make a statement shortly on our plans for bringing IS/JSA claimants with children into the Child Tax Credit.

Teenage Pregnancies (Yorkshire)

David Davis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the number of teenage pregnancies has been in (i) Haltemprice and Howden and (ii) East Riding of Yorkshire in each of the last five years.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. David Davis dated 26 January 2004
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question on what the number of teenage pregnancies has been in (i) Haltemprice and Howden and (ii) East Riding of Yorkshire in each of the last five years. (149669)
	To protect the confidentiality of individuals, figures for Haltemprice and Howden parliamentary constituency cannot be released as this might reveal small numbers of cases in individual wards.
	The number of teenage pregnancies for East Riding of Yorkshire UA for 1997 to 2001 (the latest year for which figures are available), are shown in the table below.
	In the answer provided, teenagers are interpreted as those under 18 at the time of conception, because the target set by The Government Strategy on Teenage Pregnancy is for this age-group.
	
		
			  East Riding of Yorkshire 
		
		
			 1997 195 
			 1998 196 
			 1999 167 
			 2000 174 
			 2001 (Provisional) 173

Wales

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much money is being awarded to Wales above the Barnett block to cover the costs of Objective One projects in 2003–04.

Paul Boateng: The additional funding was set out in the 2002 Spending Review: New Public Spending Plans, 2003–2006 (Cm 5570).

VAT

Mark Prisk: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the change in unreclaimable tax for small businesses following the recent increase in the starting threshold for VAT;
	(2)  what assessment his Department has made of the impact on unreclaimable costs for small businesses of the recent increase in the starting threshold for VAT.

John Healey: With the increase in the VAT threshold to £56,000 at Budget 2003, 2,000 small businesses were removed from compulsory VAT registration. Businesses who wish to continue to be VAT registered may, of course, continue to do so voluntarily.
	There is therefore no impact on unreclaimable costs for small businesses.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Assistance Funding (Tower Hamlets)

Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding will be available to fund organisations helping parents in Tower Hamlets in the next 12 months; and what proportion of funding will be allocated to (a) national organisations and (b) local organisations.

Margaret Hodge: Funding in the next financial year—to support parents both nationally and locally—will be available from a number of sources within my department. Our best estimates of the funding options available in Tower Hamlets are as follows:
	In the financial year 2004/05 £331,909 is available in Tower Hamlets for groups to apply to the Local Network Fund for Children and Young People.
	The Local Network Fund (LNF) provides community groups with small grants to support local projects and activities for 0 to 19-year-olds experiencing disadvantage and social exclusion. The fund enables local people to identify solutions to local issues affecting children and young people through grants ranging between £250 and £7,000 to community groups under four themes: Aspirations and experience; Economic disadvantage; Isolation and access; and Children's voices. Groups whose activities support parenting, involve or target parents, providing there is a clear outcome for children and young people are eligible to apply for a Local Network Fund grant.
	Decisions on allocating funding are made by assessment panels comprising local people with knowledge of issues faced by children and young people in the communities served by the funds.
	Funding for Sure Start local programmes and children's centres in Tower Hamlets over the next financial year is as follows:
	
		
			 Programme name Revenue funding 2004/05 (£) 
		
		
			 Ocean Estate 764,650 
			 Chrisp Street and Teviot 761,063 
			 Weavers 768,750 
			 Around Poplar 750,000 
			 Shadwell 750,000 
			 St. Peter's and Redcoats 750,000 
			 Bromley to Burdett 680,000 
		
	
	In addition each local programme has been allocated a capital grant of just over £1 million bringing the total capital investment to £7.7 million.
	For children's centres Tower Hamlets has been given indicative funding to March 2006. Revenue funding is £1,621,304 and capital funding is £4,472,384. The local authority is now planning their proposed profile of spend between now and March 2006.
	In the financial year 2004/05, £75,000 is available to Tower Hamlets from the Sure Start Plus pilot programme to provide personal support and advice for teenagers who discover that they are pregnant, so that they can make responsible and well-informed decisions according to their individual circumstances.
	In the financial year 2004/05, approximately £35,000 from all Tower Hamlets Sure Start local programmes will provide a teenage pregnancy midwifery lead for teenage parents offering one-to-one case worker support, running teenage parent ante-natal classes and developing working protocols for maternity services in supporting this group.
	Tower Hamlets received a Teenage Pregnancy Local Implementation Grant of £25,258 to enable adjustments to George Greens Children's Centre to support teenage parents with babies in returning to education, training and employment and support positive parenting.
	Tower Hamlets Children's Fund spent £200,649 on services delivering parental education during July to September 2003. Further funding will be available in 2004–05 to enable the Children's Fund to continue to deliver preventative services for children, young people and their families.
	Tower Hamlets also has an allocation of over £62 million for children's social services in 2004–05 through the local government finance settlement, some of which may be available to support organisations helping parents.
	Projects in Tower Hamlets may also benefit from national programmes such as the Family Support Grant and Parenting Fund. Parents in all parts of England are able to use Parentline Plus's helpline which receives core funding from the Family Support Grant.

Asylum Seekers

Hilton Dawson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what powers social services departments will have to assist children and families from whom welfare benefits are withdrawn under clause 7 of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants) Bill.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 15 December 2004
	Local authorities may exercise any of their Children Act 1989 powers and duties to assist the children of such families. They may use section 20 to accommodate the children or section 17 to provide other support. They may not use section 17 to assist any adult member of the family unless it is to prevent a breach of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR).

Carer Breaks

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance he has issued to local authorities regarding the provision of short breaks for families caring for children with severe learning disabilities.

Margaret Hodge: "Guidance and Regulations Volume 6 Children with Disabilities" was issued following the Children Act 1989. The guidance clearly sets out local councils' responsibilities for the provision of short-term or respite care.
	In August 1995 LAC(95)14 "Respite Care: Services Short-Term Placements of Children" was issued setting out Regulations where services of pre-planned short-term placements could be treated as a single placement.
	In previous circulars issued under the Quality Protects Programme, short breaks were identified as a priority area for the Children's Services Grant.
	More recently, Guidance was issued to accompany the Carers Grant 2004/05 setting out the Grant's objective to encourage councils to provide breaks services for disabled children and their families.

Child Care Strategy

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) new places have been created and (b) children have been helped under the National Child Care Strategy in the London boroughs of (i) Redbridge and (ii) Waltham Forest since April 1999; what the current year's Childcare Grant is; what is proposed for the next financial year; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: 1,990 new child care places were created in the London borough of Redbridge between April 1999 and June 2003, helping some 3,700 children. Net of places closing, this added 1,423 places to the stock of child care places in the borough. Grant of £764,400 is available to Redbridge in financial year 2003–04 to support the creation of new places. Grant allocations for 2004–06 are not split between the two financial years. For the two financial years together, £2,185,200 is available to Redbridge, including £1.1 million capital funding to create children's centres.
	3,037 new child care places were created in the London borough of Waltham Forest between April 1999 and June 2003, helping some 5,600 children. Net of places closing, this added 2,936 places to the stock of child care places. Grant of £988,800 is available in financial year 2003–04 to support the creation of new places. For the two financial years 2004–06, £4,780,200 is available to Waltham Forest, including £3.1 million capital funding to create children's centres.

Child Poverty

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average cost was in 2002–03 of raising a child to the age of 18.

Stephen Twigg: Research on expenditure on children is made complicated by the difficulty of separately identifying child and non-child expenditure within family expenditure and the issue of children sharing in the wealth of their parents. There is no consensus on the factors to be included in estimating the cost of raising a child.
	Academic and business research on this question highlights the complexities involved and has resulted in a large range of estimates. For example, a study commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in 1997 suggested a cost of around £50,000 for 'regular' support up to the age of 17. Recent research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research for the Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society suggested a much higher average cost of £140,000, which includes spending on both 'necessities' and 'luxuries'. Such results are of course not directly comparable due to the differences in the factors included and the methodology used.
	Notes
	1. Sue Middleton, Karl Ashworth and Ian Braithwaite (1997) "Small Fortunes: spending on children, childhood poverty and parental sacrifice" Joseph Rowntree Foundation
	2. Centre for Economics and Business Research (2003)http://www.liverpoolvictoria.co.uk/press/stories/child savings.htm

Child Protection

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children resident in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon were on the Child Protection Register on 31 December 2003.

Margaret Hodge: Information on the number of children and young people on the Child Protection Register in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon at 31 December 2003 is not collected centrally for this date. However, information about children who are registered on child protection registers is collected centrally from local councils with social services responsibilities at 31 March each year. The most recent figure, which was for 31 March 2002, shows that there were 100 children on the register maintained by Cambridgeshire county council. Information is not collected below this organisational level.
	Details of the number of children and young people on Child Protection Registers at 31 March 2003 will be published by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) on Thursday 29 January 2004.

Child Protection

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children resident in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon who were on the Child Protection Register on 31 December 2003 had previously been registered.

Margaret Hodge: Information on the number of children and young people on the Child Protection Register in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon at 31 December 2003 is not collected centrally for this date. However, information about children who are registered on child protection registers is collected centrally from local councils with social services responsibilities at 31 March each year. The most recent figure, which was for 31 March 2002, shows that there were 30 children on the Child Protection Register maintained by Cambridgeshire county council who had previously been registered. Information is not collected below this organisational level.
	Details of the number of children and young people on Child Protection Register at 31 March 2003, including details of re-registrations, will be published by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) on Thursday 29 January 2004.

Child Protection

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children resident in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon who were on the Child Protection Register on 31 December 2003 were also looked after by local authorities.

Margaret Hodge: Information on the number of children and young people on the Child Protection Register in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon at 31 December 2003 is not collected centrally for this specific date. However, information about children who are registered on child protection registers is collected centrally from local councils with social services responsibilities at 31 March each year. The most recent figure, which was for 31 March 2002, shows that there were 15 children on the Child Protection Register maintained by Cambridgeshire county council who were also looked after by local authorities on that date. Information is not collected below this organisational level.
	Details of the number of children and young people on Child Protection Register at 31 March 2003, including details of those also looked after on that date, will be published by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) on Thursday 29 January 2004.

Child Protection

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children resident in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon who were removed from the Child Protection Register during 2003 had been on it for more than two years.

Margaret Hodge: Information on the number of children and young people on the Child Protection Register in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon at 31 December 2003 is not collected centrally for this date. However, information about children who are registered on child protection registers is collected centrally from local councils with social services responsibilities at 31 March each year. The most recent figure, which was for 31 March 2002, shows that 15 children were removed from the Child Protection Register maintained by Cambridgeshire county council who had been registered for more than two years. Information is not collected below this organisational level.
	Details of the number of children and young people on child protection registers at 31 March 2003, including details of de-registrations, will be published by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) on Thursday 29 January 2004.

Child Protection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills for how many quangos dealing with child protection issues his Department is responsible.

Margaret Hodge: None of the non-departmental public bodies for which the Department for Education and Skills is responsible has direct responsibility for child protection issues.
	On 12 January responsibility for the Children and Family Court Advice and Support Service (CAFCASS) was transferred from the Lord Chancellor to the Secretary of State for Education. CAFCASS is not directly responsible for child protection but part of its role is to safeguard and promote the welfare of children involved in family court proceedings.

Disabled Children

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what response his Department will make to the recommendations in the latest report from the National Working Group on Child Protection and Disability;
	(2)  what his response is to the recommendations in the latest report from the National Working Group on Child Protection and Disability;
	(3)  what measures are in place to protect disabled children from abuse; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: We welcome the publication of the NSPCC report, "It doesn't happen to disabled children"—child protection and disabled children. We will consider the recommendations contained in the report carefully.
	We recognise the particular vulnerability of disabled children to abuse, which increases when, as a result of their disability, children are unable to communicate abuse. That is why Government guidance on safeguarding children, including Working Together to Safeguard Children (1999) and Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need Practice Guidance (2000), highlights the need to promote a high level of awareness of this increased vulnerability and sets out measures that should be taken to strengthen the capacity of disabled children and their families to communicate abuse.
	Both the measures outlined in the Green Paper and the forthcoming National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services will address the issue of safeguarding all children, including disabled children.

Disabled Children

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what research has been conducted on the effectiveness of the child protection system in addressing abuse of disabled children; what the findings were; and what further research is planned;
	(2)  what research has been conducted on the reasons for the higher incidence of abuse and neglect of disabled children compared to non-disabled children.

Margaret Hodge: The Department for Education and Skills has not commissioned research in this area.
	We recognise that there is a need to improve the research base in respect of safeguards for disabled children. We will consider the best way to take this forward.

Disabled Children

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the role of support services is in preventing abuse of disabled children.

Margaret Hodge: Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 sets out the duties of local authorities for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in need, including disabled children. Services for disabled children and their families are provided through local authorities, the health service and the voluntary sector. These services help to support families safeguard children and improve their life chances. Support services include short term breaks; day care; home help; domiciliary care; nursing and medical support; social events and outings for parents and children, as well as advice, guidance and counselling. In cases where there are concerns about possible abuse and neglect of disabled children, support services should work closely with local child protection services to ensure that all necessary steps are taken to safeguard the child.

Disabled Children

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what representations have been received from disabled children and adults in preventing abuse; and what action has been taken as a result;
	(2)  if he will assess the child protection system in respect of disabled children;
	(3)  what (a) the national and (b) local mechanisms are in place for monitoring and reviewing child protection policies, procedures and practices relating to disabled children; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: We have not had specific representations about abuse of disabled adults. However, the Department of Health liaises closely with a number of organisations who represent vulnerable adults and the Government is aware of their concerns in this area.
	The abuse of vulnerable adults is of great concern to the Government. We have already instigated a range of general measures, such as the National Service Framework for Older People and National Minimum Standards for particular aspects of service provision, to raise the standards of care of older people and other vulnerable adults. It has implemented specific measures to tackle abuse, principally "No Secrets" guidance, which councils, the NHS and police forces have used to establish and strengthen their local procedures for preventing and tackling abuse. By June 2004, we intend to introduce the Protection of Vulnerable Adults list, which in practice will amount to a workforce ban on those who have abused or mistreated vulnerable adults in their care.
	The Department for Education and Skills regularly receives correspondence from parents and voluntary groups about issues affecting disabled children including child protection. This has included reports from the NSPCC, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, and the National Working Group on Child Protection and Disability, which have influenced policy development. In particular, recent representations from the NSPCC were taken into account by the Disabled Children's External Working Group developing standards as part of the National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services which will be published later this year.
	The Joint Chief Inspectors' Report Safeguarding Children, published in October 2002, contained a recommendation that all relevant Inspectorates should ensure that, prior to the next report, appropriate inspection activity had been undertaken on children with disabilities.
	Safeguarding Children asked Chief Inspectors to consider whether there was a need to supplement the planned programme of inspections in any way. In planning for the next children's safeguards review, the Inspectorates have identified that additional acitivity is required in relation to children with disabilities and special needs and are developing plans to enhance their programmes in this area.
	Local mechanisms for safeguarding disabled children are set out in chapter six of the Government's child protection guidance, "Working Together to Safeguard Children (1999)".

Disabled Children

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what resources are available to promote the safeguarding of disabled children.

Margaret Hodge: It is for local councils to decide the level of resources they allocate to the safeguarding of disabled children in their area.
	Overall the local government settlement has increased resources for Children's Social Services from almost £3.7 billion in 2003–04 to just over £4.0 billion in 2004–05. This provides for an increase in total resources of some 8.7 per cent. overall.
	Every council will be receiving additional resources provided for Children's Social Services as a result of the Government's decision to provide an additional £100 million. £90 million for every council for safeguarding children, enabling councils to respond to the recommendations contained in the Victoria Climbie Inquiry Report and the Joint Chief Inspectors' report "Safeguarding Children".

Disabled Children

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills in what ways the forthcoming National Service Framework will contribute to the safeguarding of disabled children's needs.

Margaret Hodge: The NSF for Children, Young People and Maternity Services will address a number of cross cutting areas including the safeguarding of children. The External Working Group for Disabled Children has looked at child protection and has made a number of recommendations. These, alongside other recommendations are currently being considered before the final NSF is published later this year.

Children (Right of Contact)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues regarding an automatic assumption of equal right of contact by parents to children who are subject to marital break-up.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 22 January 2004
	I have regular meetings with my ministerial colleagues on the issue of child contact. In particular, I work closely with Lord Filkin, the Minister at the Department for Constitutional Affairs with responsibility for Family Justice. I recently hosted a seminar on child contact, where academics presented findings from research to improve Ministerial awareness and understanding.
	We continue to view children's interests as being paramount and we want to encourage contact between children and non-resident parents where it is in the best interest of the child and safe for all family members.
	Working with my hon. Friends in the Department for Constitutional Affairs, we are considering carefully how the family justice system and related children's services can better meet the needs of all children and their parents following relationship breakdown. We want to ensure that better outcomes are achieved for children by, where possible, helping parents agree contact arrangements without the intervention of the courts. We expect to conclude these considerations in the early part of this year and then to publish the Government's response to the Children Act Sub-Committee's report 'Making Contact Work'.

Children's Fund

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what variations there have been to the Children's Fund allocations for 2003 to 2006 notified in writing to local fund managers in January;
	(2)  what the final allocations for the Children's Fund were for 2002–03;
	(3)  when he will make an announcement on Children's Fund allocation for 2004–05.

Margaret Hodge: Allocations to Children's Fund partnerships came to £119 million in 2002–03.
	We conducted a mid year review of expenditure in November 2003 for this financial year to identify and take back genuine under spend from the first half of the year.
	We wrote to all partnerships on 19 December advising them that the programme had become over-committed. This is because after initial under spends Partnerships are now spending much closer to profile against allocations which deliberately exceeded budget provision because of the history of under spends. The higher spending by partnerships together with the contributions made by the Children's Fund to other initiatives for the 5 to 13-year-old age group.
	All this means there will be some reduction in allocations for 2004–05 and 2005–06 in order that the programme can meet all its commitments and stay within its overall limit.
	I am not able to confirm allocations for 2004–05 or 2005–06 before the end of January. I can confirm though that the Government remain committed to the valuable work of the Children's Fund and that next year's budget will enable the programme to continue to deliver preventive services for children and young people.

Children's Fund

Colin Pickthall: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding will be made available to the Lancashire Children's Fund for (a) 2004–05 and (b) 2005–06.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 12 January 2004
	I am not able to confirm the allocations for Lancashire Children's Fund for 2004–05 and 2005–06 before the end of January. My officials have met with the appropriate representative bodies and wrote to all partnerships on 19 December 2003 explaining the difficulties that had occurred because of over programming coupled with mistaken estimates of partnerships ability to spend. This together with the contribution made to other initiatives means there will be some reduction in allocations for 04–05 and 05–06 in order that the programme can meet all its commitments and remain within its financial limits.
	I can confirm though that the Government remain committed to the valuable work of the Children's Fund and that next year's budget will enable the programme to continue to deliver preventative services for children and young people.

Children's Fund

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many projects are funded by the Children's Fund; and if he will list them and the responsible parent organisation, where applicable;
	(2)  for what reason cuts have been made to Children's Fund grants in the middle of the year of operation;
	(3)  for what reason Children's Fund grants to projects signed up for three years will now not be paid in full;
	(4)  how many projects funded by the Children's Fund are likely to face cuts to their funding in the next financial year;
	(5)  how many projects funded by the Children's Fund have closed in the current financial year;
	(6)  how many Children's Fund-funded projects have appealed to the Children's Directorate appeal system against costs to their funding; and how many have been successful;
	(7)  for how long it is intended to run the appeal system set up for projects funded by the Children's Fund to appeal against cuts to their funding;
	(8)  what arrangements are in place to replace funds being cut to Children's Fund-funded projects with other public funds.

Margaret Hodge: There are 149 Children's Fund partnerships in England. These are listed in the annexe together with their lead and accountable bodies. The programme was launched in November 2001 and runs until March 2006. Each partnership is made up of representatives from the voluntary and statutory sector.
	Children's Fund partnerships will continue to receive grants for 2004–05 and 2005–06. These grants will enable the partnerships to continue to deliver preventive services for five to 13-year-olds in their area. In the early years of the programme the Partnerships under spent their allocations. To avoid this recurring partnerships were allowed to increase their planned commitment with increased allocations and monies used for other initiatives for five to 13-year-olds. However, it has become clear that the partnerships have been more effective in their spending, to the point that they are spending more closely to profile. In order to avoid over-spends, not permitted under Government accounting, the Department is taking action now so as to reduce the levels of over-commitment without damaging the programmes already in place.
	A mid year review of expenditure was undertaken in November 2003 to identify and take back genuine under spend from the first half of 2003–04 and to estimate and take back likely under spends from the second half of the year.
	The Department did not have a formal process for appealing against mid year review decisions. However, following representations from 11 partnerships, the Department wrote to all 149 on 19 December. We advised them that decisions on taking back under spend would be revisited where they were too harsh and that we would restore funds where partnerships ability to meet contractual commitments were compromised by our decisions. These measures will ensure the mid year review does not mean partnerships have to implement redundancies or close services. I expect the process of identifying the total number that need funds restored to be completed by the end of January.
	In a letter to all partnerships before Christmas the Department also explained that there was over-commitment in the programme and that there will therefore be some reduction in allocations for 2004–05 and 2005–06 in order that the programme can spend within its limits. Officials are currently assessing the extent of over-commitment in the programme. I expect this work to be completed by the end of January so that we can confirm partnerships' allocations for 2004–05. Until then we have advised partnerships not to commission any new services.
	There has not been any closure of Children's Fund partnerships. It is a key characteristic of the fund that decisions on which services to commission are taken locally, not by central Government, against the aims and objectives of the Children's Fund programme. Partnerships themselves may decide which services to retain or close at any time, in response to evolving local circumstances.
	
		
			 Partnership Accountable body Region Wave 
		
		
			 Birmingham Birmingham City Council West Midlands 1 
			 Blackburn with Darwen Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council North West 1 
			 Blackpool Blackpool Borough Council North West 1 
			 Bolton Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council North West 1 
			 Bradford Bradford Metropolitan Borough Council Yorkshire and Humber 1 
			 Bristol Barnardos South West South West 1 
			 Camden Camden Local Education Authority London 1 
			 Cornwall NCH South West 1 
			 Doncaster Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council Yorkshire and Humber 1 
			 Gateshead Gateshead Council North East 1 
			 Greenwich Greenwich Council London 1 
			 Hackney The Learning Trust London 1 
			 Halton NCH North West 1 
			 Haringey Haringey Council London 1 
			 Hartlepool Hartlepool Borough Council North East 1 
			 Islington Islington Council London 1 
			 Kent Family Welfare Association South East 1 
			 Kingston upon Hull Hull City Council Yorkshire and Humber 1 
			 Knowsley Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council North West 1 
			 Lancashire NCH North West 1 
			 Leeds Leeds City Council—Social Services Yorkshire and Humber 1 
			 Leicester NCH East Midlands 1 
			 Lincolnshire Lincolnshire County Council East Midlands 1 
			 Liverpool Liverpool City Council North West 1 
			 Manchester Manchester City Council North West 1 
			 Middlesbrough NCH North East 1 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle City Council North East 1 
			 Newham London Borough of Newham London 1 
			 Norfolk Norfolk County Council East 1 
			 Nottingham Nottingham Social Services East Midlands 1 
			 Oldham Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council North West 1 
			 Portsmouth Portsmouth City Council South East 1 
			 Rochdale Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council North West 1 
			 Salford Salford City Council North West 1 
			 Sandwell Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council West Midlands 1 
			 Sheffield Sheffield City Council Yorkshire and Humber 1 
			 Southwark London Borough of Southwark London 1 
			 Stockton-on-Tees Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council North East 1 
			 Sunderland City of Sunderland North East 1 
			 Tower Hamlets London Borough of Tower Hamlets London 1 
			 
			 Barking and Dagenham London Borough of Barking and Dagenham London 2 
			 Barnsley Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council Yorkshire and Humber 2 
			 Bournemouth The Children's Society South West 2 
			 Brent London Borough of Brent London 2 
			 Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove City Council South East 2 
			 Calderdale Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council Yorkshire and Humber 2 
			 Cheshire Cheshire County Council North West 2 
			 Coventry Coventry City Council West Midlands 2 
			 Cumbria Council for Voluntary Action South Lakeland North West 2 
			 Darlington Darlington Borough Council North East 2 
			 Derby Derby City Council East Midlands 2 
			 Derbyshire Derbyshire County Council East Midlands 2 
			 Devon Playlines Trust South West 2 
			 Durham Durham County Council North East 2 
			 East Sussex East Sussex County Council South East 2 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham London 2 
			 Isle of Wright Isle of Wright Local Education Authority South East 2 
			 Kirklees NCH Yorkshire and Humber 2 
			 Lambeth Lambeth Social Services London 2 
			 Lewisham London Borough of Lewisham London 2 
			 Luton Luton Borough Council East 2 
			 Medway Medway Council South East 2 
			 North East Lincolnshire North East Lincolnshire Council Yorkshire and Humber 2 
			 North Lincolnshire North Lincolnshire Council Yorkshire and Humber 2 
			 North Tyneside North Tyneside Council North East 2 
			 North Yorkshire NSPCC Yorkshire and Humber 2 
			 Northamptonshire Northamptonshire County Council Education Service Finance East Midlands 2 
			 Northumberland NCH North East 2 
			 Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire County Council East Midlands 2 
			 Peterborough Peterborough City Council East 2 
			 Plymouth Plymouth City Council South West 2 
			 Redcar and Cleveland Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council North East 2 
			 Rotherham External Funding Team, Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council Yorkshire and Humber 2 
			 Sefton Sefton Council North West 2 
			 Solihull Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council West Midlands 2 
			 South Tyneside South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council North East 2 
			 Southampton Southampton City Council South East 2 
			 St. Helens NCH North West 2 
			 Stoke-on-Trent Voluntary Action Stoke-on-Trent West Midlands 2 
			 Suffolk Suffolk County Council East 2 
			 Tameside Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council North West 2 
			 Telford and Wrekin Borough of Telford and Wrekin West Midlands 2 
			 Torbay The Children's Society South West 2 
			 Trafford Trafford Borough Council North West 2 
			 Walsall Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council West Midlands 2 
			 Waltham London Borough of Waltham Forest London 2 
			 Wandsworth Wandsworth Borough Council London 2 
			 Westminster City of Westminster London 2 
			 Wirral The Children's Society North West 2 
			 Wolverhampton Wolverhampton City Council West Midlands 2 
			 
			 Bedfordshire Bedfordshire County Council East 3 
			 Bracknell Forest Bracknell Forest Borough Council South East 3 
			 Buckinghamshire Buckingham County Council South East 3 
			 Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire County Council East 3 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire East Riding of Yorkshire Council Yorkshire and Humberside 3 
			 Essex Essex County Council East 3 
			 Hampshire Hampshire County Council South East 3 
			 Hertfordshire Hertfordshire County Council East 3 
			 Milton Keynes Milton Keynes Council South East 3 
			 Oxfordshire Oxfordshire County Council South East 3 
			 Reading Turner's Court Youth Trust South East 3 
			 Slough Slough Borough Council South East 3 
			 Southend-on-Sea Southend-on-Sea Borough Council East 3 
			 Surrey Surrey County Council South East 3 
			 Thurrock Thurrock Council East 3 
			 Wakefield Wakefield M.D.C Social Services and Health Department Yorkshire and Humberside 3 
			 West Sussex West Sussex County Council South East 3 
			 West Berkshire West Berkshire Council, Children's Services South East 3 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead South East 3 
			 Wokingham Wokingham District Council South East 3 
			 York City of York Council Yorkshire and Humberside 3 
			 Barnet London Borough of Barnet London 3 
			 Bexley Bexley Council London 3 
			 Bromley London Borough of London 3 
			 City of London Corporation of London (Education Department) London 3 
			 Croydon Croydon Voluntary Action London 3 
			 Ealing London Borough of London 3 
			 Enfield Opportunity Links Ltd. London 3 
			 Harrow London borough of Harrow Education Department London 3 
			 Havering London Borough of Havering London 3 
			 Hillingdon London Borough of Hillingdon London 3 
			 Hounslow London Borough of Hounslow London 3 
			 Kensington and Chelsea Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea London 3 
			 Kingston-upon-Thames Royal Borough of Kingston-upon-Thames London 3 
			 Merton Merton Voluntary Service Council London 3 
			 Redbridge Redbridge Council for Voluntary Services London 3 
			 Richmond-upon-Thames Richmond Council for Voluntary Service London 3 
			 Sutton London Borough of Sutton London 3 
			 Bury Bury MBC North West 3 
			 Stockport Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council North West 3 
			 Warrington Warrington Children's Fund North West 3 
			 Wigan Social Services Wigan Council North West 3 
			 Bath and North East Somerset Barnardos South West South West 3 
			 Dorset Dorset County Council South West 3 
			 Gloucestershire Gloucestershire County Council South West 3 
			 North Somerset Barnardos South West South West 3 
			 Poole NCH (South West) South West 3 
			 Somerset Barnardos South West South West 3 
			 South Gloucestershire South Gloucestershire Council South West 3 
			 Swindon Swindon Borough Council South West 3 
			 Wiltshire Barnardos South West South West 3 
			 County of Herefordshire Herefordshire Council West Midlands 3 
			 Dudley NCH Children's Fund Dudley West Midlands 3 
			 Shropshire Shropshire County Council West Midlands 3 
			 Staffordshire Staffordshire County Council West Midlands 3 
			 Warwickshire NCH Warwickshire West Midlands 3 
			 Worcestershire Worcestershire County Council Youth Services West Midlands 3 
			 Leicestershire Leicestershire County Council East Midlands 3 
			 Rutland Rutland County Council East Midlands 3 
			 
			 Bradford City MDC Bradford Metropolitan Borough Council Yorks and Humberside 1 
			 Brighton and Hove City Council Brighton and Hove City Council South East 2 
			 Bristol (Barnados Fund) Barnardos South West South West 1 
			 Cornwall (NCH) (Kerrier) NCH South West 1 
			 Durham County Council (Easington) Durham County Council North East 2 
			 Greenwich Council Greenwich Council London 1 
			 Haringey Council London Borough of Haringey London 1 
			 London Borough of Brent Social London Borough of Brent London 2 
			 London Borough of Southwark London Borough of Southwark London 1 
			 Luton Borough Council Luton Borough Council (Lifelong Learning) East 2 
			 Manchester City Council Manchester City Council North West 1 
			 North Yorkshire (Scarborough) North Yorkshire County Council Yorks and Humberside 2 
			 Northamptonshire County Council Northamptonshire County Council Education Service Finance East Midlands 2 
			 Oldham MBC Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council North West 1 
			 Portsmouth City Council Portsmouth City Council South East 1 
			 Rochdale MBC Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council North West 1 
			 Sandwell Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council West Midlands 1 
			 Sheffield City Council Sheffield City Council Yorks and Humberside 1 
			 Solihull MBC Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council West Midlands 2 
			 Suffolk County Council (St. Edmundsbury) Suffolk County Council East 2 
			 Sunderland City City of Sunderland North East 1 
			 Wirral Metropolitan Borough The Children's Society North West 2

Children's Fund

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps he is taking to ensure that the appeals process following mid-year changes to the Children's Fund is available to relevant organisations.

Margaret Hodge: The Department met representatives from the main voluntary sector organisations involved in the Fund together with the LGA and the ADSS on 18 December. Following that meeting officials wrote to all Children's Fund partnerships on 19 December 2003.
	We advised partnerships that where our decisions at the mid-year review had compromised partnerships' ability to their meet contractual obligations, we would revisit them. Furthermore, we set aside money to assist with this and to ensure that there was no premature closure of projects. The Children's Fund regional teams have been discussing the detailed implications with partnerships and I expect the process to be complete by the end of January.

Children's Fund

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he intends to announce resources for the Children's Fund for 2004–05.

Margaret Hodge: I expect to announce resources for the Children's Fund in 2004–05 at the end of January or early February.

Children's Green Paper

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his policy is, under the proposals outlined in the Children's Green Paper, on retention of data files kept on children when they become adults; and under what circumstances (a) children and (b) those with parental responsibility will have access to them.

Margaret Hodge: The Queen's Speech said that a Bill will be introduced to improve services designed to protect children. This will implement proposals contained in the Children's Green Paper "Every Child Matters", and, subject to consideration of responses to the Green Paper consultation, will include proposals that each local authority should set up a local information sharing system to enable practitioners to share early information about children and young people so that better services can be provided to them and their families.
	The Green Paper proposals relate to children and young people to age 19. Local authorities will be responsible for the proposed local information hubs and will be required to comply with the Data Protection Act in the way they manage and run the hubs. The data protection principles set out in the Act include requirements that personal data shall be accurate and up to date, not excessive for the purpose for which it is held and that it is kept for no longer than necessary. Data held on information hubs will be held in accordance with these requirements. How long data on any particular child is held will depend upon individual circumstances.
	Except where there is an exemption under the Data Protection Act, children or those with parental responsibility for them would have access to the information held about them on the proposed information hubs, under the subject access provisions of the Data Protection Act. They would also be able to comment on any information held on the system that was inaccurate or which needed updating.

Class Sizes

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average class size for (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools in (i) Brent East constituency, (ii) the London Borough of Brent, (iii) London and (iv) England was in each year since 1997.

Stephen Twigg: The requested information is given in the tables.
	
		Maintained primary schools(22): average class size(23) position in January each year, 1997 to 2003
		
			  Classes taught by one teacher 
			 Location 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 
		
		
			 Brent East Constituency 26.1 27.0 27.1 27.3 27.4 26.4 26.9 
			 Brent LEA 26.5 26.7 27.2 27.4 27.3 27.1 27.6 
			 London 27.1 27.2 27.3 27.3 27.0 26.9 26.9 
			 England 27.5 27.7 27.5 27.1 26.7 26.3 26.3 
		
	
	(22) Includes middle schools as deemed.
	(23) Classes as taught during one selected period in each school on the day of the Census in January.
	Source
	Annual Schools' Census
	
		Maintained secondary schools(24): average class size(25) position in January each year, 1997 to 2003
		
			  Classes taught by one teacher 
			 Location 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 
		
		
			 Brent East Constituency 20.3 19.9 20.2 20.9 21.8 21.0 22.4 
			 Brent LEA 20.5 20.2 20.0 20.5 22.2 21.5 21.3 
			 London 21.7 21.7 21.8 22.0 22.1 22.1 21.9 
			 England 21.7 21.7 21.9 22.0 22.0 21.9 21.9 
		
	
	(24) Includes middle schools as deemed.
	(25) Classes as taught during one selected period in each school on the day of the Census in January.
	Source
	Annual Schools' Census

Divorce Courts

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which of Mr. Justice Nicholas Wall's recommendations regarding the divorce courts system have been implemented.

Margaret Hodge: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Monmouth (Mr. Edwards) on 6 January 2004, Official Report, column 293W.

Failing Schools

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the impact on the number of failing schools of providing a higher score as a result of failing in English than of failing in maths and science.

David Miliband: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The Department has made no assessment of this particular matter. The weight attached to particular judgments within an individual school inspection is a matter for Ofsted. I have asked HM Chief Inspector, David Bell, to write to the hon. Member and place a copy of his letter in the Library.

Formula Spending Share (Deprivation)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the value of the formula spending share for each primary school pupil for deprivation is in each local authority for 2004–05.

David Miliband: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The education formula spending share allocates the same value for each primary aged pupil with additional educational needs. For 2004–05, this value is £1,370. The proportion of primary aged pupils with additional educational needs is estimated in each authority using measures of children in families in receipt of income support, children in families in receipt of working families tax credit and pupils who do not have English as their mother tongue.

Further Education Funding

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the level of funding per pupil in further education was in (a) Brent East, (b) the London borough of Brent, (c) London and (d) England in each year since 1997.

Alan Johnson: The Department does not collect information on the level of funding per pupil in further education at the local or regional level. Mark Haysom the Learning and Skills Council's Chief Executive will write to the hon. Member with details of further education spend per pupil in (a) Brent East, (b) the London borough of Brent, and (c) London. A copy of his letter will be placed in the House Library.
	The following table shows funding per full-time equivalent student in further education in England from 1997–98 to 2003–04. These are cash figures that show total funding for the further education (FE) sector. The figures include monies provided for participation and certain funding for earmarked purposes, including capital, the Standards Fund and other special grants to colleges. These figures are consistent with those published in the 'Departmental Annual Report 2003'.
	
		Funding per full-time equivalent student in further education 1997–98 to 2003–04 -- £
		
			  Total funding 
		
		
			 1997–98(26) 3,070 
			 1998–99(26) 3,090 
			 1999–2000(26) 3,380 
			 2000–01(26) 3,640 
			 2001–02(27) 3,890 
			 2002–03(28) 4,020 
			 2003–04(28) 4,240 
		
	
	(26) Actual
	(27) Provisional
	(28) Planned

Further Education Funding

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research his Department has undertaken to examine what the effect on provision would be were all the further education colleges funded by the Further Education Funding Council to withdraw from all work-based learning provision.

Alan Johnson: None. There is no evidence of which the Department is aware that further education providers are considering withdrawal from Work Based Learning for Young People (WBL) on a large scale. Further education providers currently deliver around 20 per cent. of WBL provision and are an important and valued means of delivering such learning to young people. Further education providers are now funded by the Learning and Skills Council, the body responsible for planning and funding all post-16 learning (other than higher education).

Higher Education

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the reasons why 10 per cent. of the pupils who achieve two A level passes do not go into higher education.

Alan Johnson: The Youth Cohort Study shows that around nine in 10 young people who achieve two or more A-levels by the age of 18 progress to Higher Education by the time they are 21.
	Research published by the Department in 2001 ("Social Class and Higher Education: Issues Affecting Participation by Lower Social Class groups" Connor, H. at al DfEE Research Report No. 246) looked at the factors affecting participation in HE by different social class groups. It found that among those who were qualified to enter higher education but had decided against going, the main reasons were because they wanted to start work, because they did not need a higher education qualification for their chosen career or because of the expected costs involved.
	In addition, the Youth Cohort Study identified other reasons for choosing not to enter HE:
	to earn money and become financially independent;
	not achieving the grades for their chosen course;
	self belief, with young people thinking they could not get in or they would find higher education too difficult.;
	lack of interest.
	Other research has identified ethnicity, housing tenure and parental education as significantly affecting the decision to enter higher education.

Higher Education

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research he has commissioned into the effects of tuition fees on medical manpower planning.

Alan Johnson: I have not commissioned such research. Since the introduction of tuition fees in 1998, demand for places on medical courses has continued to outstrip significantly the number of places, despite an increase in the number of places available. Between 1999 and 2001, plans for some 2,250 more medical school places in the UK were announced. As a result of the extra investment, the number of students entering medical school will increase to over 7,300 in 2005. The number of UK applicants to study medicine at UK universities is also at its highest since 1986 (the earliest year for which data is available).
	We do not anticipate any significant impact on demand for medical courses after the introduction of variable fees. The Department of Health will, however, be monitoring demand for, and take-up of, places on medical courses. Department of Health Ministers have made it clear that they will, if necessary, take measures to ensure that any increase in the level of tuition fees will not have an adverse impact on the supply, retention, diversity or quality of students on health professional courses, including medicine.

Higher Education

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research he has commissioned into the repayment of tuition fees by women medical students.

Alan Johnson: I have not commissioned such research. Medical students do not have to repay student loans until they graduate and earn over £15,000 per year. Doctors earn considerably in excess of the national average: a newly qualified GP can expect to earn over £45,000, and will receive considerably more than that in time. Consultants will earn even more. So medical graduates will be able to pay off their student loan for living costs and for tuition fees comparatively rapidly.
	If, despite the high salary levels generally, some doctors who work part time or take career breaks pay off their student loans more slowly, the student support proposals announced by my right. hon. Friend on 8 January are helpful. The Government intend to write-off outstanding student loan balances after 25 years. This will apply to those entering HE from 2006 and cover maintenance and fee loans.

Higher Education

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will estimate the number of higher education students who will be affected by the introduction of top-up fees.

Alan Johnson: The number of students affected by variable fees will depend on a wide range of factors, including decisions on fee levels to be taken by institutions providing higher education to full time undergraduates.

Higher Education

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether he will require universities charging higher than average variable fees to pay their academic staff more.

Alan Johnson: Higher education institutions are responsible for their own academic and administrative affairs, including pay for their staff. The Government plays no part in setting levels of pay in the higher education sector. Universities themselves are the best judges of how to deploy the funding they receive.

Higher Education

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the current higher education participation rate in England is with respect to people under the age of 30.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 20 January 2004
	The current Higher Education Initial Participation Rate (HEIPR) is 43.9 per cent. for 2001/02.
	The HEIPR covers English-domiciled 17 to 30-year-old first-time entrants to Higher Education courses who remain on their course for six months or more.
	The HEIPR will replace the Initial Entry Rate (IER) as the way that we measure progress toward 50 per cent. A time-series of HEIPR figures will be published in Spring 2004.
	The IER was recently quality-reviewed under guidelines issued by the Office for National Statistics. The review (published in November 2003) concluded that the IER was "basically robust" 1 but highlighted some minor shortcomings which the HEIPR corrects for. More detail can be found in the report of the review, a copy of which has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
	An Age Participation Index (API) also exists for Great Britain—though does not include students aged over 20 or part-time students. The current figure for 2001/02 is 35 per cent.
	1 Review of the Initial Entry Rate into Higher Education, DfES, p6.

Learning and Skills Council

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills from which Learning and Skills Council-funded work-based learning providers funding contracts were removed in 2002–03.

Alan Johnson: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council. Mark Haysom, the Council's Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member with this information and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

Learning and Skills Council

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was spent by each Learning and Skills Council on employer initiatives in 2003; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: As a member of the national Skills Alliance the Learning and Skills Council has a major part to play in securing the effective implementation of our Skills Strategy. The Strategy sets a new framework for tackling our long-standing skills gaps.
	The amount spent by each local LSC on employer initiatives is an operational matter and I have asked Mark Haysom, the Council's Chief Executive, to write to my hon. Friend with this information and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

Learning and Skills Council

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions his Department has held with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on the appropriateness of transferring responsibility for skills from Learning and Skills Councils to elected regional assemblies.

Alan Johnson: The Government's national Skills Strategy, published in July 2003, emphasises the need for all relevant agencies to work together collaboratively in support of the skills agenda. We are committed to building strong and effective Regional Skills Partnerships, which will enable Regional Development Agencies, local Learning and Skills Councils, and other key stakeholders to work together to deliver skills, training, business support and employment services. The partnerships will help take forward the priorities identified in the regional economic strategies.
	Elected Regional Assemblies also have an important role in training and skills, and in our White Paper 'Your Region, Your Choice' we set out proposals for each Assembly to appoint two members to the Board of each local LSC in its region, and for the national LSC to consult Assemblies on its guidance to local LSCs.
	As well as these regional and sub-regional roles, there is a vital national dimension to the planning and funding of learning and skills, discharged by the Learning and Skills Council. The Skills Alliance Delivery Partners Group, which is chaired by the LSC Chief Executive Mark Haysom and includes an RDA representative, is charged with stimulating co-ordinate action between the relevant national and regional agencies to secure effective delivery of the skills strategy.

Nursery Vouchers

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will give parents of three-year-old children flexibility to use the 10 hours per week nursery voucher; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the number of children in (a) England and (b) Gloucestershire who attend nursery schools for 10 hours or more per week; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The Nursery Education Voucher scheme ended in May 1997. It was replaced by an entitlement to a free high quality nursery education place which may be taken up at a range of providers in the maintained, private, voluntary and independent sectors. From April 2004, six months ahead of the original target, the entitlement will be extended to all three year olds. A free place consists of a minimum of five two and a half hour sessions for thirty-three weeks of the year. It is underpinned by a statutory Code of Practice which encourages local authorities and providers to allow parents to take up their entitlement flexibly.
	Around 88 per cent. of three year olds nationally are already receiving some free provision. The latest figures on Under 5's provision in England were published in Statistical Bulletin 'Provision for children under five years of age in England—January 2003', a copy of which is available on the Department's website www. dfes.gov.uk/statistics .The number of free nursery education places taken up by three and four year olds in Gloucestershire Local Education Authority area and England was as follows:
	
		Number(29) of free nursery education places taken up by three and four year olds in Gloucestershire Local Education Authority area and England
		
			 Location Three year olds Four year olds 
			  Maintained nursery and primary schools(30) Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers(31) Maintained nursery and primary schools(30) Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers(32) Total 3 and 4 year olds(33) 
		
		
			 Gloucestershire LEA 50 4,200 4,200 2,200 10,600 
			 England 218,700 226,100 472,200 107,100 1,024,000 
		
	
	(29) Part-time equivalent number of children.
	(30) Includes classes in maintained primary schools only. Gloucestershire does not have any maintained nursery schools.
	(31) Part-time equivalent number of children aged three at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Nursery Education Grant data collection exercise.
	(32) Part-time equivalent number of children aged four at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Early Years Supplementary data collection exercise.
	(33) The totals do not add up to their constituent parts due to rounding.

Ofsted

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many inspectors have resigned from Ofsted in each year since 1996–97.

David Miliband: holding answer 22 January 2004
	This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, David Bell, will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of his letter in the Library.

Parentline

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what the total cost to public funds has been of supporting the charity Parentline Plus since its inception;
	(2)  what the percentage change in the number of telephone calls to Parentline by parents is expected to be once the investment of £763,000 has been made;
	(3)  what the cost to public funds is estimated to be per email answered by the charity Parentline;
	(4)  what the estimated number of service users is for the email service of the charity Parentline;
	(5)  how many parents are expected to benefit from the recent investments made to the charity Parentline.

Margaret Hodge: Parentline Plus is the operating name of FamilyLives, and was formed through the merger of Parentline UK, Parent Network and the National Stepfamily Association, in winter 1999. Parentline Plus is a registered charity.
	Family support helpline
	From financial year 2000–01 onwards (the first full financial year applicable), central Government funds supporting Parentline Plus in its work as a family support helpline have been:
	
		£
		
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			  Family Support Grant (ex-Home Office, now Department for Education and Skills) 
			 Project to develop materials for Afro-Caribbean communities 145,000
			 Core funding  1,000,000 1,000,000 1,000,000 
			 Share Parent Plus for activity based materials project   48,000  
			 Project to support parents of teenagers 45,000 40,000  
			 Telephone parenting support funded with Department of Health  20,000 20,922  
			 Parenting Fund (Department for Education and Skills) n/a n/a n/a (34)762,690 
			 Totals 190,000 1,060,000 1,068,922 1,762,690 
		
	
	(34) Family Support Helpline extension, as detailed below
	The Home Office commissioned an evaluation of the Parentline Plus family support helpline. This was carried out between August 2002 and March 2003 by the Thomas Coram Research Unit at the Institute of Education, University of London, and will be published on the Home Office website shortly. The evaluation recognised that Parentline Plus provides a good quality helpline service to over 60,000 callers pa (three quarters of whom were first-time callers), and that further expansion in the helpline service is necessary to meet demand from callers. The charity makes significant use of trained volunteers.
	The main work supported by the recent £762,690 investment from the Parenting Fund is:
	(a) expanding helpline provision to answer 75,000 calls pa (equivalent to a 25per cent. increase in call numbers);
	(b) developing and piloting an email service to answer an anticipated 10,000 emails pa;
	(c) developing and piloting a more efficient system for call handling, in particular for improved ways of working with more specialist providers of family support advice;
	(d) developing a ring-back telephone support service offering more detailed support to those parents who need most help;
	(e) establishing telephone-based parenting groups; and
	(f) promotion of the helpline and email service.
	Staffing and systems at Parentline Plus will be flexible so that call-takers can deal with either telephone calls or emails. This means that the 75,000 telephone call/10,000 email balance may change, to best meet demand. It is therefore not possible to quote the cost per email dealt with. It is not possible to state the exact number of parents benefiting from recent investment, although the number of calls/emails are detailed above.
	Other work
	From the financial year 2000–01 onwards (the first full financial year applicable), central Government funding (including that from Children's Fund partnerships) to Parentline Plus for other work has been:
	
		£
		
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			  Marriage and Relationship Support Grant (ex- Lord Chancellor's Department, now Department for Education and Skills) 
			 Core funding 60,000 61,500 62,000 62,000 
			 Research and development  40,000   
			 Youth Justice Board (NDPB reporting to Home Office)  n/a n/a n/a 
			 Information dissemination, marketing of telephone support service, advice to YJB, equipment for call centres 64,914
			 Improving Behaviour in School Team (Department for Education and Skills) 
			 Bullying helpline 180,000 183,500 188,928 192,744 
			 Research project on bullying, with Family Service Units   80,000 40,000 
			 Section 64 (ex-Department of Health, now Department for Education and Skills) n/a   n/a 
			 Capital grant   5,000  
			 Telephone parenting courses project  20,200 20,700  
			 Teenage Pregnancy Unit (ex-Department of Health, now Department for Education and Skills) n/a
			 Time to Talk project to help parents talk to their children about sex and relationships (also for staff training).  76,944 97,872  
			 Delivery of work connected to relationship work and helpline88,500 
			 Sure Start (Department for Education and Skills) n/a n/a n/a (35)15,000  
			 Children's Fund (Department for Education and Skills) (including funding by Children's Fund partnerships) n/a n/a   
			 Young Runaways helpline project   15,998 31,720 
			 Piloting Services and Disseminating/Alone in London   21,456 74,909 
			 Parenting courses for parents and carers in local communities across Liverpool.   5,785  
			 Wirral Parents' Group and Phoneline project6,976 
			 Essex helpline services.3,825 
			 Totals 304,914 382,144 497,739 515,674 
		
	
	(35) Preliminary work on Change Development Project

Procurement (Outsourcing)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on his Department's procurement policy with regard to offshore IT and call centre outsourcing; whether his Department is outsourcing IT and call centre jobs to offshore companies; to which countries his Department has outsourced these jobs; how much his Department has spent on this outsourcing in each of the last two years; and how much has been budgeted for this purpose for the next two years.

Stephen Twigg: My Department's procurement policy is based on value for money, having due regard to propriety and regularity. My Department complies with the EU Treaty, including the principle of non-discrimination, the EC procurement directives and the UK's international obligations. Provided these principles, and other more detailed arrangements such as those set out in the "Staff Transfers in the Public Sector—Statement of Practice", are satisfied, there is no reason why my Department should not let contracts to offshore companies. This said, my Department has not outsourced any former internal IT and call centre jobs to offshore companies. We have no plans to do so. My Department also lets a considerable number of contracts for services with a very wide variety of partners. Some of those contracts have included IT and call centre elements as an integral part of the delivery arrangements. In no case has there been a direct contractual relationship with an offshore company for an IT or call centre related contract.

Pupil Referral Units

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much (a) revenue and (b) capital funding each local education authority has been allocated by the Department to establish pupil referral units.

David Miliband: holding answer 19 January 2004
	The Department does not allocate funding specifically for the setting up or maintaining of pupil referral units. Local education authorities receive revenue funding for pupils with high cost needs through the high cost pupil sub-block of the Education Formula Spending Share. The proportion of pupils with high cost needs is estimated for each authority using population data, children in families in receipt of Income Support and low birth weight.

School Meals

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether a school governing body can refuse to accept delegation from a local education authority of responsibility for the school meals service.

Stephen Twigg: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The effect of the Education (Transfer of Functions Concerning School Lunches etc.) (England) (No. 2) Order 1999 is that when a school's budget share includes funding for meals, the statutory duties to provide school lunches (including free school meals for eligible pupils), and to comply with nutritional standards, are transferred to the school's governing body. The governing body cannot refuse. In Essex funding is delegated in budget shares for all schools and consequently the statutory duties rest with the schools' governing bodies. If the authority provides a 'buy-back' service a school may choose to purchase that from the authority; if it does not, the school governing body must make alternative provision. The Department is in touch with Essex County Council regarding support for schools as the current contract comes to an end.

School Meals

Alan Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether there is a responsibility upon a local education authority to provide school meals to pupils attending its schools.

Stephen Twigg: Local education authorities have a duty to provide free and paid for school meals that meet nutritional standards. Where a school has a delegated budget for meals, this duty becomes the responsibility of the governing body. From April 2000, funding for school meals was delegated to all secondary schools. Primary and special schools can opt for delegation.

Secondary Schools (Collaboration)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) formal, (b) federated and (c) informal collaborations are taking place (i) between secondary schools and (ii) between secondary schools and further education colleges, broken down by local education authority.

Charles Clarke: holding answer 22 January 2004
	70 per cent. of all secondary schools are involved in at least one formal collaborative network with other secondary schools. The numbers of schools involved in formal collaborative networks by LEA are contained in the following table.
	The Department does not hold details of collaboration taking place between secondary schools and further education colleges; nor does the Department collect information on collaboration that takes place informally.
	
		Number of schools involved in formal collaborative networksby LEA
		
			 LEA Number of secondary schools in network 
		
		
			 Barking and Dagenham 8 
			 Barnet 13 
			 Barnsley 14 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 10 
			 Bedfordshire 20 
			 Bexley 9 
			 Birmingham 76 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 9 
			 Blackpool 8 
			 Bolton 16 
			 Bournemouth 6 
			 Bracknell Forest 4 
			 Bradford 28 
			 Brent 13 
			 Brighton and Hove 9 
			 Bristol City of 18 
			 Bromley 11 
			 Buckinghamshire 21 
			 Bury 5 
			 Calderdale 10 
			 Cambridgeshire 23 
			 Camden 9 
			 Cheshire 32 
			 Cornwall 23 
			 Coventry 14 
			 Croydon 16 
			 Cumbria 27 
			 Darlington 5 
			 Derby 11 
			 Derbyshire 24 
			 Devon 23 
			 Doncaster 17 
			 Dorset 17 
			 Dudley 16 
			 Durham 30 
			 Ealing 12 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 10 
			 East Sussex 24 
			 Enfield 17 
			 Essex 62 
			 Gateshead 10 
			 Gloucestershire 33 
			 Greenwich 14 
			 Hackney 8 
			 Halton 8 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 8 
			 Hampshire 37 
			 Haringey 10 
			 Harrow 6 
			 Hartlepool 6 
			 Havering 13 
			 Herefordshire 8 
			 Hertfordshire 51 
			 Hillingdon 12 
			 Hounslow 14 
			 Isle of Wight 4 
			 Isles of Scilly 0 
			 Islington 9 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 4 
			 Kent 70 
			 Kingston upon Hull City of 15 
			 Kingston upon Thames 8 
			 Kirklees 18 
			 Knowsley 11 
			 Lambeth 10 
			 Lancashire 59 
			 Leeds 43 
			 Leicester 16 
			 Leicestershire 14 
			 Lewisham 12 
			 Lincolnshire 54 
			 Liverpool 32 
			 Luton 12 
			 Manchester 22 
			 Medway 11 
			 Merton 5 
			 Middlesbrough 6 
			 Milton Keynes 10 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 11 
			 Newham 15 
			 Norfolk 31 
			 North East Lincolnshire 8 
			 North Lincolnshire 9 
			 North Somerset 9 
			 North Tyneside 11 
			 North Yorkshire 19 
			 Northamptonshire 27 
			 Northumberland 18 
			 Nottingham 17 
			 Nottinghamshire 31 
			 Oldham 15 
			 Oxfordshire 22 
			 Peterborough 10 
			 Plymouth 12 
			 Poole 6 
			 Portsmouth 8 
			 Reading 3 
			 Redbridge 15 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 11 
			 Richmond upon Thames 6 
			 Rochdale 14 
			 Rotherham 17 
			 Rutland 2 
			 Salford 14 
			 Sandwell 18 
			 Sefton 22 
			 Sheffield 27 
			 Shropshire 18 
			 Slough 10 
			 Solihull 12 
			 Somerset 28 
			 South Gloucestershire 10 
			 South Tyneside 9 
			 Southampton 9 
			 Southend-on-Sea 9 
			 Southwark 12 
			 St. Helens 11 
			 Staffordshire 25 
			 Stockport 8 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 13 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 17 
			 Suffolk 27 
			 Sunderland 17 
			 Surrey 25 
			 Sutton 7 
			 Swindon 7 
			 Tameside 9 
			 Telford and Wrekin 8 
			 Thurrock 9 
			 Torbay 4 
			 Tower Hamlets 16 
			 Trafford 13 
			 Wakefield 13 
			 Walsall 18 
			 Waltham Forest 17 
			 Wandsworth 9 
			 Warrington 7 
			 Warwickshire 24 
			 West Berkshire 10 
			 West Sussex 16 
			 Westminster 8 
			 Wigan 15 
			 Wiltshire 13 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 5 
			 Wirral 22 
			 Wokingham 5 
			 Wolverhampton 18 
			 Worcestershire 16 
			 York 11 
			   
			 Total 2,391 
		
	
	Source
	EduBase 13/01/04

Secondary Schools (Collaboration)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans his Department has to provide help to develop management information systems where secondary schools or further education institutions are (a) undertaking collaborative working and (b) are part of a federated structure.

Charles Clarke: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The Department has provided funding and is working closely with LEAs to support them in ensuring they have an infrastructure for management information systems in all their maintained schools, including those schools working collaboratively with other educational institutions or those within a federated structure. Total funding is £30 million via LEAs in 2001–02 and £7 million supplementary in 2002–03. Collaborative working is also supported in the form of access to on-line communities through the National College of School Leadership's Talk2Learn facility and will be part of a single annual conversation with the education system on targets, priorities and support and improved data flows.

Student Finance

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average student loan taken out by students from (a) Huntingdon, (b) Cambridgeshire and (c) England was in each year since 2000–01.

Alan Johnson: The tables show the average full-time income-contingent loan taken out by students in Cambridgeshire and in England and the average mortgage style loan taken out by students in England.
	Data on the average student loan taken out by students from Huntingdon are not available.
	
		Average income-contingent loan(36) , (37) taken out by domicile of students in academic years 2000/01 to 2002/03(38) (£)
		
			  Academic year 
			  2000/01 2001/02(39) 2002/03 (provisional) 
		
		
			 Cambridgeshire(40) , (41) 3,170 3,210 (42)— 
			 England 3,160 3,190 3,240 
		
	
	(36) New student support arrangements were introduced from academic year 1998/99. New students in 1998/99 (apart from certain specified exceptions) received support for maintenance expenditure through means-tested grants (comprising about a quarter of the support available) and non income-assessed student loans (comprising about three quarters of the support available). From 1999/2000 students who entered higher education after 1998/99 received support for maintenance expenditure through loans, of which approximately three quarters of the value was non income-assessed. Loans made under these arrangements are repayable on an income contingent basis.
	(37) Excludes the fixed rate loans (£500) for eligible part-time students, introduced in September 2000
	(38) Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10
	(39) Latest year for which data by local education authority (LEA) are available
	(40) LEA of domicile of student
	(41) LEA level data have been taken from available information and may include a small number of loans which have been authorised for payment but not paid.
	(42) Regional breakdown not yet available
	Source:
	Student Loans Company
	
		Average mortgage style(43)loan taken out by domicile of student—academic years 2000/01 to 2002/03(44) -- £
		
			  Academic year 
			  2000/01 2001/02 2002/03 (provisional) 
		
		
			 England 1,460 1,520 1,580 
		
	
	(43) Loans available to students who entered higher education up to academic year 1997/98 and those who entered in 1998/99 under existing arrangements. These loans are non income assessed and are repayable on a fixed term, mortgage style, basis.
	(44) Figures have been rounded to the nearest £10.
	Source:
	Student Loans Company
	Data on the local education authority of domicile of students taking out fixed rate mortgage style loans (normally those who entered higher education before 1998/99) are not available because applications are made through the students' education institution. The data provided in the answer relate to student loans available from the Student Loans Company and do not include bank loans, overdrafts, and informal loans from family and friends.

Student Finance

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many students he expects to receive the full £1,500 maintenance grant, assuming current student numbers; and how many will receive an amount of grant;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost to public funds of the introduction of higher education maintenance grants of £1,500 in 2006.

Alan Johnson: Based on the current student cohort we estimate about 30 per cent. of English and Welsh students will benefit from the full grant when it is introduced in the 2004/05 academic year. Approximately a further 10 per cent. of students should benefit from a partial grant. I refer my hon. Friend to the Regulatory Impact Assessment, published on 8 January, which sets out the costs of increasing the grant to £1,500 a year from 2006/07. Copies of the Regulatory Impact Assessment were placed in the Library of the House it is also available on the Department for Education and Skills website.

Student Finance

Gerry Steinberg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what fees will be chargeable to students for part-time degrees at (a) universities and (b) further education colleges under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill.

Alan Johnson: Universities and further education colleges are currently free to determine the level of fees which are chargeable to part-time students in higher education. The Higher Education Bill will not change this.

Sure Start

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the steps his Department is taking to monitor the effectiveness of the Sure Start programme.

Margaret Hodge: A major evaluation of the Sure Start programme began in January 2001. It will examine the effectiveness of Sure Start on children, families and communities, both in the short, medium and long-term by tracking a sample of eight thousand (8,000) children and their families over time. The first information on impact and effectiveness will become available over the next 12 months.

Sure Start

Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children have had contact with Sure Start in Battersea since its inception.

Margaret Hodge: Contact by Sure Start local programmes is defined to mean that a child aged 0–3 years and/or their parent or carer has taken up services. Since its inception in October 2000 Sure Start Battersea reports that it has provided services to some 630 children under four living in the catchment area.

Sure Start

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the annual budget is for the Sure Start Childcare and Early Years magazine.

Margaret Hodge: The Sure Start Childcare and Early Years magazine was published twice in 2003. The cost for the two issues was £66,339.61 including distribution to 37,000 partners.
	The Sure Start Childcare and Early Years magazine was merged with our Upstart magazine at the end of 2003. The new magazine is called Sure Start. The planned annual budget for the new magazine is approximately £160,000 which includes distribution to 60,000 partners.

Sure Start

Helen Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which constituencies in Yorkshire and Humberside have one or more Sure Start initiatives.

Margaret Hodge: The following table shows the constituencies in Yorkshire and Humberside that have operational Sure Start local programmes, Early Excellence Centres, neighbourhood nurseries and children's centres based within them. Figures for neighbourhood nurseries however are changing by the day as new settings open. The Government intend that, wherever possible, existing Sure Start provision will develop into children's centres as part of the expansion of high quality integrated services to all pre-school children and their families living in the 20 per cent. most disadvantaged wards in England.
	
		
			 Constituency Number of Sure Start local programmes Number of Early Excellence Centres Number of neighbourhood nurseries Number of children'scentres 
		
		
			 East and North Ridings 
			 Beverley and Holderness, James Cran, Conservative   2  
			 Brigg and Goole, Ian Cawsey, Labour   1  
			 City of York, Hugh Bayley, Labour 1
			 Cleethorpes, Shona McIsaac, Labour 1  2  
			 Great Grimsby, Austin Mitchell, Labour 4  3 1 
			 Hull East, John Prescott, Labour 2  2  
			 Hull North, Kevin McNamara, Labour 2  3  
			 Hull West and Hessle, Allan Johnson, Labour 3  2  
			 Scarborough and Whitby, Lawrie Quinn, Labour 1  2  
			 Scunthorpe, Elliot Morley, Labour. 2  1  
			 Selby, John Grogan, Labour 1  1  
			 Yorkshire East, Greg Knight, Conservative 1  1  
			  
			 South Yorkshire 
			 Barnsley Central, Eric Illsley, Labour 2  9  
			 Barnsley East and Mexborough, Jeff Ennis Labour 2  1  
			 Barnsley West and Penistone, Michael Clapham, Labour 1  3  
			 Don Valley, Caroline Flint, Labour 1  1  
			 Doncaster Central, Rosie Winterton, Labour 1
			 Doncaster North, Kevin Hughes, Labour 3
			 Rotherham, Denis MacShane, Labour 1 1 1  
			 Rother Valley, Kevin Barron, Labour. 1  1 1 
			 Sheffield Attercliffe, Clive Betts, Labour  1 (part of the SheffieldEEC network) 2  
			 Sheffield Brightside, David Blunkett, Labour. 3 1 (part of the SheffieldEEC network) 1  
			 Sheffield Central, Richard Caborn, Labour 3 1 (part of the SheffieldEEC network) 3  
			 Sheffield Heeley, Meg Munn, Labour 1
			 Sheffield Hillsborough, Helen Jackson, Labour   2  
			 Wentworth, John Healey, Labour  1 2 1 
			  
			 West Yorkshire 
			 Batley and Spen, Mike Wood, Labour   1  
			 Bradford North, Terry Rooney, Labour 2  3  
			 Bradford South, Gerry Sutcliffe Labour   4  
			 Bradford West, Marsha Singh, Labour 1 1 2  
			 Calder Valley, Chris McCafferty, Labour 1  1  
			 Dewsbury, Ann Taylor, Labour 2  1  
			 Halifax, Alice Mahon, Labour 2
			 Hemsworth, Jon Trickett, Labour 1
			 Huddersfield, Barry Sheerman, Labour 3 1 3  
			 Keighley, Ann Cryer, Labour   1  
			 Leeds East, George Mudie, Labour. 1  1 3 
			 Leeds Central, Hilary Benn, Labour. 3  4  
			 Leeds North East Fabian Hamilton, Labour 1
			 Leeds North-west, Harold Best, Labour. 1
			 Leeds West, John Battle, Labour 1  2  
			 Morley and Rothwell, Colin Challen Labour 1  3  
			 Pontefract and Castleford, Yvette Cooper, Labour.   2  
			 Shipley, Chris Lesley, Labour 1
			 Wakefield, David Hinchcliffe, Labour 2 1 1

Sure Start

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many toothbrushes have been distributed free by each Sure Start project.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 21 January 2004
	This information is not collected. It is estimated that to date some 450,000 packs have been distributed to families under the Department of Health's Brushing for Life scheme. This scheme operates in the 29 former district health authority areas with the highest levels of tooth decay and all Sure Start Local Programmes in areas where the water is not fluoridated. Many Sure Start Local Programmes also distribute similar packs to babies and young children under their own oral health promotion schemes.

Sure Start

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what legal services and goods Sure Start projects are (a) authorised and (b) forbidden to provide at no cost to the recipient.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 21 January 2004
	There are 524 Sure Start local programmes delivering services to children under 4 and their families in the most disadvantaged areas of the country. They aim to achieve better outcomes for children, parents and communities by increasing the availability of child care, improving health, education and emotional development for young children, and supporting parents as parents and in their aspirations towards employment. Services to meet these aims are designed in consultation with families in the area to ensure they reflect local needs. Programmes are neither prevented nor required to provide any goods or legal services free of charge.

Sure Start

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to evaluate Sure Start schemes; and what arrangements have been made to ensure that lessons from such evaluations are disseminated.

Margaret Hodge: A comprehensive evaluation of the Sure Start programme began in January 2001. It will examine the effectiveness of Sure Start on children, families and communities in the short, medium and long-term by tracking a sample of eight thousand (8,000) children and their families over time. The first information on impact and effectiveness will become available over the next 12 months.
	Lessons from the evaluation will be disseminated widely; through the Sure Start Unit Research Publication series, academic journals and practitioner publications and through workshops, seminars and conferences for both practitioners and the academic community.

Teacher Qualifications

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the relative value of the (a) English and (b) Welsh Qualified Teacher Status qualifications;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of obstacles to prospective teachers who live on the Welsh borders qualifying as teachers;
	(3)  whether a teacher who completes their initial teacher training course in England may undertake the practical experience element in a Welsh school.

David Miliband: The funding, content and standards required of courses of initial teacher training provided by Welsh institutions are matters for the National Assembly for Wales. Courses funded by the Department for Education and Skills through the Teacher Training Agency and which lead to the award of Qualified Teacher Status by the General Teaching Council for England are governed by the Education (School Teachers' Qualifications) (England) Regulations 2003. These require that any periods of practical experience undertaken as part of a course of initial teacher training in England must take place wholly or mainly at schools in England, but do not preclude some periods of teaching experience taking place elsewhere. The same regulations provide for the automatic recognition in England of teaching qualifications awarded by the General Teaching Council for Wales.

Teenage Parents

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the proportion of teenage parents who were in local authority care in each of the last five years.

Margaret Hodge: The information requested is not currently available at national level. Officials within DfES are currently identifying ways in which this data can be collected. At the meeting of the Technical Working Group on Personal Social Services Statistics, held on 23 October 2003, it was agreed that the question "Was the young person a parent at 31 March (if female)" would be included in the SSDA903 return for 2004–05. In addition, the Technical Working Group agreed that other questions for future returns and detailed guidance be referred to an ad hoc Working Group for further consideration. The newly established Working Group will assess the feasibility of obtaining information about births among young people in and leaving care and identify methods for collecting this information, taking account of legal and confidentiality considerations.

Tribunal Judgments

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what mechanism exists for monitoring and enforcement of local authority compliance with Special Education Needs and Disability Tribunal judgments; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: There are no formal mechanisms to monitor or enforce the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal's decisions on special educational needs appeals or disability claims. By law, local education authorities (LEAs) must carry out the Tribunal's decision. If a parent believes that an LEA has failed to comply with the Tribunal's decision within the given timescale they can write to complain to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, who will consider what action to take.

Universities (Children in Care)

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of children in care went to university in each of the last five years; and how many completed their course in each year.

Margaret Hodge: The Department for Education and Skills collects data from local authorities about accommodation and activity of children and young people in their nineteenth year, who were recently looked after by local authorities. This data collection was introduced for the first time in 2002–03. The collection specifically records the number of young people who were in education, training or employment at age 19 and of those, the number involved in higher education. It does not identify which are at university or those in other age groups.
	In 2002–03, of the 4,900 young people in the cohort, 2,400 were in education, training or employment on their nineteenth birthday. Of these, 280 were in higher education (6 per cent. of children). This figure includes those studying for degrees, diplomas in higher education, teaching and nursing qualifications. Data is not available on how many completed their courses.

University for Industry

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether University for Industry-funded learning targets were achieved in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03.

Alan Johnson: In 2001–02, my Department set Ufi/learndirect 12 targets. Of these nine can be classified as "learning targets"—the others referred to the information and advice service/learning materials. Ufi achieved eight out of these targets. In 2002–03, Ufi/learndirect met four out of seven "learning targets".

Website Publications

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what criteria his Department uses when deciding whether a leaflet which it publishes is to be made available only on its website.

Charles Clarke: The Department does not publish leaflets on websites only. We do make printed material available on our websites but it is not departmental policy to publish leaflets online only.

Working Skills

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps he is taking to increase the proportion of the working age population in the West Midlands reaching degree level qualifications.

Alan Johnson: These are a range of initiatives from which the region will benefit.
	Foundation Degrees are a positive step in expanding opportunities for people to enter higher education. The combination of academic study and work-based learning with this flexible approach means that they appeal to a wide variety of people including those already in work. The Higher Education Funding Council for England has invited the region to bid for 1,000 additional student places in 2004/05.
	For mature learners we are providing an important pathway to higher education through Access to HE Courses. The West Midlands is served by one of the larger Access providers—the Open College Network for the West Midlands.
	The Aimhigher Programme in conjunction with the Higher Education Funding Council for England and the Learning and Skills Council is very active in the region in improving links between its schools, FE colleges and HEIs, with part of its remit to encourage more young people to take up degrees.
	We are also funding five 14–19 pathfinders in the West Midlands to test local delivery of 14–19 education and training with the aim, amongst other things, of equipping young people to enter further or higher education.
	Excellence in Cities is raising aspirations and attainment in Schools. A part of their remit is to encourage pupils to consider higher education. From 2005 Excellence in Cities will be involved in all secondary schools across the City of Coventry.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Cambridge Private Planning Application

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he will allow the Cambridge private planning application to proceed.

Keith Hill: My right hon. Friend, the Deputy Prime Minister issued his decision to grant planning permission for the application by Cambridge University to build a Bl(b) research centre on 20 November 2003. My right hon. Friend, the Deputy Prime Minister has no further jurisdiction with regard to this matter and cannot therefore make any further comment. The implementation of this permission is now a matter for Cambridge University. However, the decision is the subject of a legal challenge.

Council Tax

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what guidance he has issued to local authorities on the minimum council tax level appropriate for a band D home.

Nick Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has issued no guidance on the minimum level of council tax.

Council Tax

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the (a) average, (b) maximum and (c) minimum council tax is for a band D home.

Nick Raynsford: The average area council tax for a Band D property occupied by two adults in England in 2003–04 is £1,102. The maximum is £1,294 and the minimum is £570.
	In practice, lower figures than those quoted above are payable where discounts have been granted, and zero council tax is payable for Band D properties that are exempt.

Erith Marshes

John Austin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the environmental consequences of building on the Erith Marshes; what assessment he has made of whether such development conflicts with the (a) local council's biodiversity plan and (b) recommendations of the biodiversity team of the Mayor of London; what assessment he has made of the increased flood risk in adjacent areas if the development proceeds; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Hill: These are matters for consideration by the local planning authority as part of the planning process. Where a project is receiving funding through the Thames Gateway programme a flood risk assessment is required, and applicants must consult with the Environment Agency where there is a potential risk of flooding.

EU Funding

Ann Winterton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the funding amount allocated from the European Regional Development Fund is during the 2000 to 2006 period to (a) the North-East, (b) the North-West and (c) Yorkshire and Humberside.

Nick Raynsford: The following amounts of European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) have been allocated for the period 2000 to 2006. The allocations are in euros.
	
		
			  Euros 
		
		
			 North-East Objective 2 581,330,000 
			 North-West Objective 1 893,048,000 
			 North-West Objective 2 808,330,000 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Objective 1 785,588,000 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Objective 2 448,360,000

EU Funding

Ann Winterton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister from which budget within his Department the sum for funding for the European Regional Development Fund is allocated.

Nick Raynsford: In England, all Departments with European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) policy responsibilities provide their own budgetary cover. However, all income and related expenditure from ERDF are accounted to parliament by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister as the Managing Authority. The devolved administrations have separate arrangements for their own geographical areas.

Fire and Rescue Service

Roger Gale: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the changes in the number of jobs in Kent County Fire and Rescue Service that would arise as a result of the proposed regionalisation of the Fire and Rescue Service.

Nick Raynsford: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him and to the hon. Members for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow), for Taunton (Mr. Flook), for North Wiltshire (Mr. Gray), for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr. Hammond), for Poole (Mr. Syms) and for Spelthorne (Mr. Wilshire) on 22 January 2004, Official Report, columns 1457–58W.

Fire and Rescue Service

Roger Gale: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  if he will list those whom he has consulted on the plans to regionalise the Kent Fire and Rescue Service;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with (a) retained and (b) full-time firefighters in Kent on his plans to regionalise the Fire and Rescue Service; and what their advice was.

Nick Raynsford: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him and the hon. Members for Buckingham, Taunton, North Wiltshire, Runnymede and Weybridge, South East Cambridgeshire, Brentwood and Ongar, Poole and Spelthorne on 22 January 2004, Official Report, columns 1454–57W.

Fire and Rescue Service

Roger Gale: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister under what powers he would implement the regionalisation of the Fire and Rescue Service in Kent without the consent of Kent county council.

Nick Raynsford: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Members for Buckingham, Taunton, North Wiltshire, Runnymede and Weybridge, South East Cambridgeshire, Brentwood and Ongar, Poole and Spelthorne on 22 January 2004, Official Report, columns 1458–59W.

Fire and Rescue Service

Roger Gale: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what research relating to Kent he has commissioned to provide the evidential basis for his plans to regionalise the Fire and Rescue Service.

Nick Raynsford: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Members for Buckingham, Taunton, North Wiltshire, Runnymede and Weybridge, South East Cambridgeshire, Brentwood and Ongar, Poole and Spelthorne on 22 January 2004, Official Report, columns 1453–54W.

Fire and Rescue Service

Charles Hendry: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what level of grant has been provided to each (a) metropolitan fire authority, (b) county council fire authority and (c) combined fire authority for each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will put the information that the hon. Member for Wealden has asked for in relation to metropolitan fire authorities in the Library once officials have completed work on the local government settlement.
	However, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is unable to provide the information that the hon. Member has asked for in relation to county council fire authorities because the grant that they receive is general grant to cover all services supplied by the county. No amount is hypothecated for fire and rescue services. Nor can the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister provide the requested information on combined fire authorities because they will not have received any grant before 2004–05.
	Nonetheless, the Government have delivered another good settlement for fire and rescue authorities. The Government have ensured that once again all authorities receive above inflation increases, with fire and rescue authorities receiving increases in grant between 3.5 per cent. and 5 per cent. and averaging 4.3 per cent. Since taking office, this Government have increased funding by 30 per cent. in real terms.
	
		
			  Expenditure provision for the fire and rescue service in England (£ million) Increase on previous year (percentage) 
		
		
			 1997–98 1,237 4.4 
			 1998–99 1,299 5.0 
			 1999–2000 1,346 3.6 
			 2000–01 1,393 3.5 
			 2001–02 1,463 5.0 
			 2002–03 1,521 4.0 
			 2003–04 1,583 4.0

Fire and Rescue Service

Charles Hendry: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what guidance he gives to fire authorities on the level of financial reserves they should maintain.

Phil Hope: My right hon. Friend the Member for Greenwich and Woolwich (Mr. Raynsford) wrote to all fire and rescue authorities with guidance on 23 January. In that letter my right hon. Friend acknowledged that for Combined Fire Authorities the transition to precepting status has raised a number of issues, including the level of financial reserves. The letter clarified the Government's position on a number of points, including:
	(a) In line with CIPFA guidance, there is no recommended level of reserves.
	(b) The impact on council tax payers should be considered by authorities when considering reserves. This may point to spreading any burden on council tax payers over a number of years.
	(c) The level of risk will not change as a result of the move to precepting status. CFAs should explore arrangements with their constituent authorities that reflect this.
	Fire Service Circular 1/2004, also issued on 23 January, contained more detailed guidance on these issues.

Fire and Rescue Service

Charles Hendry: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will take account of the need for fire authorities to build up reserves in decisions on capping precepting fire authorities.

Phil Hope: My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister has made it clear that he expects council tax and precept increases in all authorities to be in low single figures. This applies to all authorities, including fire and rescue authorities. My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister is prepared to use his capping powers if necessary. When considering capping, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister would want to look closely at local authorities' budgets and council tax rises before coming to a view on what might be appropriate factors to take into account.

Flooding

John Mann: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many flood plains in England have been given planning permission for housing in each of the last five years.

Keith Hill: Data on planning permissions granted within the flood risk areas defined by the Environment Agency is not collected or held centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, the Environment Agency and local planning authorities report annually under the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA's) High Level Target 12 on consultations on developments in floodplains and the extent to which the decision follows the agency's advice. The report for 2002–03 can be found on the Environment Agency website at www.environment-agency.gov.uk.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister land use change statistics show that for the period 1998 to 2001, 9 per cent. of land that changed to residential use in England was in flood risk areas, and 12 per cent. of new dwellings were in the areas defined by the Environment Agency as at risk from coastal or river flooding. Some 64 per cent. of these were on previously developed land, much of which was defended against flooding to an appropriate minimum standard. About 12 per cent. of the land area of England is within the river and coastal flood risk areas.

Housing

Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will place in the Library copies of the Chief Executive of the Rent Service's correspondence with the Rent Service's area manager for London since November 2001.

Keith Hill: Correspondence between the Chief Executive of the Rent Service and the Rent Service's Area Manager for London is largely of a confidential nature under Part 2 (2) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. To identify any correspondence that is not confidential would incur disproportionate cost.

Housing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he is taking to find new sites upon which to build (a) private and (b) social housing; and what budget has been allocated for that purpose in 2003–04.

Keith Hill: The Sustainable Communities Plan sets out the policies, resources and partnerships necessary create a better balance in housing supply and demand. This includes the steps the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is taking to improve site assembly for both private and social housing. It is backed by £22 billion investment over three years.
	Key initiatives include:
	Provision of additional homes in designated growth areas, with £610 million over three years for site assembly, delivery mechanisms, additional affordable housing and essential local infrastructure. Combined with London, the growth areas have the potential to deliver an extra 200,000 homes above planned levels.
	Making better use of surplus public sector land, for instance through a new register established by English Partnerships and through the introduction of new arrangements for its disposal. Identifying sites for additional housing, which would include developments for both private housing, affordable housing and homes for key workers, is one of the key priorities for English Partnerships.
	Proposals to allow local authorities to seek affordable housing on smaller sites where this is justified, a measure particularly important in the South-east where almost 80 per cent. of housing sites are less than half a hectare in size.

Housing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what measures he has taken to ensure that new housing estates are not built on land that is prone to flooding; and what plans he has for further measures.

Keith Hill: The Government's policy requirements for England have been given in Planning Policy Guidance Notes 3 "(Housing)" and 25 "(Development and Flood Risk)". PPG25 categorises the suitability of land for various types of development, including housing, of the basis of the flood risk maps issued by the Environment Agency. The policies in PPG25 are due to be reviewed later this year against possible developments in flood risk assessments since it was issued in 2001.

Housing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what percentage of social housing is owned and operated by private housing foundations; and what plans he has for the further transfer of social housing to such foundations.

Keith Hill: In 2003 the breakdown between social housing owned by registered social landlords and local authorities was 41.4 per cent. and 58.6 per cent. respectively. The transfer of local authority housing to registered social landlords remains one of the three options available to local authorities where additional resources are required to deliver decent homes.

Housing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to encourage council tenants to take better care of their rented property.

Keith Hill: The duty to carry out on-going repairs and maintenance as well as any necessary major improvement works to a home lies with the local authority landlord rather than the tenant. Certain small, urgent repairs which are likely to affect the tenant's health, safety or security are covered by the 'Right to Repair', which means that by law, these must be carried out by the local authority quickly and at no cost to the tenant.
	However, through their tenancy agreement, tenants may have responsibilities to carry out certain types of repair or to behave in a way which does not cause nuisance or annoyance to neighbours. The Council Tenant's Charter, published by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is readily available to councils and tenants and provides further details of the rights and responsibilities of council tenants.

Housing

Karen Buck: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what proportion of tenants in the social rented sector are paying rents above the average rent for the appropriate bedroom category in (a) England, (b) each region and (c) each London borough;
	(2)  what proportion of tenants in the social rented sector are paying rents £10 or more above the average for their bedroom size in (a) each region of England and (b) each London borough;
	(3)  what proportion of tenants in the social rented sector are paying £10 or more above the average for properties with (a) one bedroom, (b) two bedrooms, (c) three bedrooms and (d) four or more bedrooms.

Keith Hill: The Housing Corporation and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister hold data on rents paid by tenants, but only at the level of the average rent paid to RSLs/LAs for each bedroom category. However, the information requested is not held centrally, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Housing

Andrew Selous: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the effect on demand for housing in the UK of the housing needs of nationals of the EU accession states who may come to the UK.

Keith Hill: No assessment has been made of the impact upon demand for housing of immigrants who may come to the UK from EU accession countries.
	However, this Government does not believe that housing shortages in London and the south-east can be blamed on international migration. We recognised in the Sustainable Communities Plan that for more than 30 years all Governments failed to meet housing need.
	The Sustainable Communities Plan sets out the policies, resources and partnerships that will achieve the step change essential to turn around the legacy of decades of neglect and under-investment, including:
	£5 billion for more affordable homes to be built, including at least £1 billion for key worker housing.
	Measures to ensure delivery of 930,000 new homes in existing regional plans for the south-east to 2016.
	Additional homes to be provided in designated growth areas, with £610 million over three years for site assembly, delivery mechanisms, additional affordable housing and essential local infrastructure. Combined with London, the growth areas have the potential to deliver an extra 200,000 homes above planned levels.
	Measures to make better use of the existing housing stock, especially to bring empty properties back into use.

IT Contracts

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list information technology contracts in his Department and its predecessors with a value of above £20 million in each of the last 10 years; what the inception date for each system was; when it became fully functional; when it became fully debugged; and what the cost of over-runs has been.

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and those components of former Departments that make up the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister have not let any contracts that meet this description.

Local Government

Stephen Dorrell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the total value of central government grant paid to each local authority in Leicestershire in each financial year between 1996–97 and 2003–04.

Nick Raynsford: The information requested is tabled as follows.
	
		£ million
		
			  1996–97(45) 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 Leicestershire County Council  
			 Specific grants inside AEF 22.812 15.668 15.945 25.960 41.017 54.495 71.908 48.995 
			 Revenue Support Grant 244.985 127.070 130.033 131.938 126.384 141.285 119.944 154.610 
			 National non domestic rates 188.387 115.272 121.614 132.527 149.629 147.894 162.341 163.571 
			 Total grant 456.184 258.010 267.592 290.425 317.030 343.674 354.193 367.176 
			  
			 Blaby 
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.100 0.094 0.091 0.087 0.093 0.086 0.105 0.220 
			 Revenue Support Grant 0.271 0.375 0.434 0.212 0.000 0.194 0.000 0.945 
			 National non domestic rates 3.018 2.704 2.747 2.959 3.292 3.280 3.707 3.153 
			 Total grant 3.389 3.173 3 272 3.258 3.385 3.560 3.812 4.318 
			  
			 Charnwood 
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.217 0.230 0.214 0.231 0.354 0.319 0.361 0.637 
			 Revenue Support Grant 2.792 3.102 3.428 3.208 2.851 3.453 2.963 4.765 
			 National non domestic rates 5.417 4.900 4.995 5.360 5.917 5.921 6.656 5.358 
			 Total grant 8.426 8.232 8.637 8.799 9.122 9.693 9.980 10.760 
			  
			 Harborough 
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.081 0.082 0.081 0.080 0.088 0.080 0.104 0.216 
			 Revenue Support Grant 0.636 0.852 0.624 0.549 0.334 0.443 0.131 1.063 
			 National non domestic rates 2.506 2.290 2.366 2.561 2.863 2.851 3.258 2.680 
			 Total grant 3.223 3.224 3.071 3.190 3.285 3.374 3.493 3.960 
			  
			 Hinckley and Bosworth   
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.127 0.131 0.134 0.137 0.157 0.145 0.180 0.287 
			 Revenue Support Grant 0.819 0.978 1.036 0.857 0.610 0.894 0.568 1.683 
			 National non domestic rates 3.455 3.095 3.138 3.376 3.720 3.703 4.137 3.496 
			 Total grant 4.401 4.204 4.308 4.370 4.487 4.742 4.885 5.466 
			  
			 Melton 
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.065 0.067 0.071 0.066 0.072 0.065 0.060 0.138 
			 Revenue Support Grant 0.872 0.927 0.970 0.938 0.810 0.992 0.824 1.469 
			 National non domestic rates 1.648 1.475 1.493 1.607 1.763 1.783 2.015 1.670 
			 Total grant 2.585 2.469 2.534 2.611 2.645 2.840 2.899 3.277 
			  
			 North West Leicestershire   
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.144 0.144 0.147 0.151 0.152 0.174 0.179 0.386 
			 Revenue Support Grant 1.922 2.150 1.685 1.548 1.386 1.671 1.371 2.416 
			 National non domestic rates 2.940 2.659 2.704 2.914 3.238 3.225 3.647 2.990 
			 Total grant 5.006 4.953 4.536 4.613 4.776 5.070 5.197 5.791 
			  
			 Oadby and Wigston
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.062 0.067 0.067 0.081 0.102 0.094 0.108 0.154 
			 Revenue Support Grant 0.508 0.643 0.671 0.571 0.417 0. 595 0.417 1.023 
			 National non domestic rates 1.878 1.689 1.716 1.841 2.009 2.018 2.273 1.947 
			 Total grant 2.448 2.399 2.454 2.493 2.528 2.707 2.798 3.123 
			  
			 Leicester City 
			 Specific grants inside AEF 1.117 9.188 9.413 12.963 22.630 32.027 55.142 47.292 
			 Revenue Support Grant 24.016 148.702 153.958 152.799 151.781 160.180 158.277 187.441 
			 National non domestic rates 10.377 66.883 69.487 74.954 84.757 81.834 89.118 84.754 
			 Total grant 35.510 224.773 232.858 240.716 259.168 274.041 302.537 319.487 
			  
			 Rutland 
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.041 0.620 0.911 1.188 1.701 3.421 4.681 3.698 
			 Revenue Support Grant 0.549 6.748 6.199 5.835 5.236 6.075 5.646 8.899 
			 National non domestic rates 1.190 7.833 8.330 9.080 10.279 10.393 11.622 10.480 
			 Total grant 1.780 15.201 15.440 16.103 17.216 19.889 21.949 23.076 
			  
			 Leicestershire Police Authority   
			 Specific grants inside AEF 0.340 1.024 1.602 0.000 0.000 0.000 6.721 7.031 
			 Revenue Support Grant 15.848 16.343 16.530 17.096 15.935 17.615 15.452 25.535 
			 Police Grant 47.056 48.312 49.102 51.332 53.166 55.515 55.660 60.032 
			 National non domestic rates 18.929 18.198 18.032 19.412 21.499 21.470 23.380 13.198 
			 Total grant 82.173 83.877 85.266 87.840 90.600 94.600 101.213 105.797 
		
	
	(45) Figures for 1996–97 are not comparable with those for later years for Leicestershire County Council, Leicester City and Rutland due to local government organisation. This resulted in Leicester City and Rutland becoming unitary authorities on 1 April 1997.
	Notes:
	1. AEF = Aggregate External Finance
	2. More generally, figures have not been adjusted to take account of changes between years in function or responsibility.
	Source:
	RA and RS returns to ODPM

Local Government

Adrian Flook: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what representations he has received from Taunton Deane borough council on the level of increase received in (a) revenue support grant and national non-domestic rates and (b) rent allowances for handling rents and council tax benefit; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  by what percentage central Government funding to Taunton Deane borough council has changed in 2004–05;
	(3)  what the (a) revenue support grant and (b) national non-domestic rate settlement for Taunton Deane was for (i) 2003–04 and (ii) 2004–05.

Nick Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has received two representations from Taunton Deane borough council on the provisional local government finance settlement 2004–05, which include comments on the transfer of funding for rent allowances and council tax benefit (CTB) to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).
	In order to make a fair comparison, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has assessed what Formula Grant the authority would have received in 2003–04 had the transfer of benefits taken place in the previous year. On this basis the Revenue Support Grant (RSG) plus National Non-Domestic Rates (NNDR) will increase by 3.3 per cent.
	In 2003–04 Taunton Deane received £3.458 million in RSG and £3.579 million in NNDR. Under the Government's proposals for 2004–05, Taunton Deane receives £3,680 million in RSG and £2,824 million in NNDR.

Local Government

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what his policy is on enabling councils to raise a greater proportion of their income themselves;
	(2)  what plans he has to reform the way in which local councils are funded;
	(3)  what discussions he has had with (a) the Chancellor of the Exchequer and (b) the Prime Minister regarding re-structuring the way in which local councils are funded.

Nick Raynsford: The ways in which local councils are funded are being considered by the Balance of Funding Review which is due to report in the summer. Papers for the Review's Steering Group are available on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website at http://www.local.odpm.gov.uk/finance/balance.htm.

Lottery Revenue

Phil Willis: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the total value is of Lottery revenue used to support Government-sponsored projects within his Department since 1997.

Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has no policy or operational responsibility for distribution of National Lottery Fund.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Yardley (Estelle Morris) on 26 January 2004, Official Report, column 45W.

Parliamentary Questions

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will reply to the Questions tabled by the hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield for Named Day Answer on 19 January, reference (a) 148012, (b) 148011 and (c) 148014.

Yvette Cooper: The Parliamentary Questions tabled by the hon. Member for Named Day answer on 19 January were all duly answered on the day requested.

PPG25

Norman Baker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many and what percentage of planning applications rejected by planning authorities pursuant to revised PPG25 have been subsequently allowed on appeal.

Keith Hill: The Environment Agency's report on the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) high-level target 12—Development and flood risk—contains details of 50 appeals in 2002–03, which had involved a sustained objection by the agency on flooding grounds. Of these, two were withdrawn by the appellant and in five cases the flooding objection was resolved before the appeal decision.
	In four cases (8 per cent.), appeals for minor development were allowed contrary to advice from the Environment Agency. Six appeals (12 per cent.) were allowed with the agency's objections fully mitigated through planning conditions and 33 appeals (66 per cent.) were dismissed, 30 of which were for minor developments. 28 cases are reported as dismissed using agency advice and five as dismissed not using Agency advice. Further details are in the report, which is available on the Internet at www.environment-agency.gov.uk

Prison Leavers

John Hayes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what strategy the Government have for the reintegration of prison-leavers into social housing and their surrounding community.

Paul Goggins: I have been asked to reply.
	The Social Exclusion Unit report on reducing re-offending by released prisoners, published in July 2002, recommended that the Government develop and implement a National Rehabilitation Strategy involving all relevant departments and agencies. In response, the Home Office has set up two inter-departmental groups of Ministers and officials to develop an action plan planned for publication in early 2004. Its work strands include finance and benefits; drugs; health; employment, training and education; children and families; and accommodation.
	Within the accommodation strand, the Home Office, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM), and the Department for Work and Pensions are working together to devise an accommodation strategy for offenders. This will aim initially to increase the number of people leaving prison with some form of accommodation arranged. Its longer terms aims will be: to assess and identify the particular accommodation needs of each offender; to enable offenders to maintain or, where appropriate/to close down their accommodation while in custody; and to develop systems that enable offenders to access appropriate and sustainable housing options on release. The strategy will encompass the roles and responsibilities of the correctional services, local authorities and other housing providers, the voluntary sector and Jobcentre Plus. Pilots are currently being developed to test how best to join up these services, working initially with street crime offenders.
	The strategy will build on some important provisions already in place in the community and custody: the Homelessness Act 2002; the Homelessness (Priority Need for Accommodation) (England) Order 2002; the Supporting People programme; and the Prison Service's Custody to Work Initiative.

Regional Assemblies

Philip Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether elected regional assemblies will have power to determine transport-related priorities within their regions.

Nick Raynsford: The transport powers of elected regional assemblies were set out in the White Paper "Your Region, Your Choice: Revitalising the English Regions" (Cm 5511).
	Elected regional assemblies will be responsible for identifying transport priorities and producing a regional transport strategy, advising the Government on funding allocations for local transport schemes and for allocating Rail Passenger Partnership grants. They will also have powers to make proposals to the Highways Agency and the Strategic Rail Authority for schemes of regional importance.

Regional Assemblies

Philip Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he expects elected regional assemblies to have the power to determine how public spending within the region is allocated.

Nick Raynsford: The finance powers of elected regional assemblies were set out in Chapter 5 of the White Paper "Your Region, Your Choice: Revitalising the English Regions" (Cm 5511).
	Assemblies will be funded primarily by central Government grant and will have freedom to spend their funding as they judge best.

Regional Assemblies

Philip Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which powers elected regional assemblies will take from existing local authorities.

Nick Raynsford: The powers and responsibilities of elected regional assemblies were set out in the White Paper "Your Region, Your Choice: Revitalising the English Regions" (Cm 5511). The Fire White Paper, "Our Fire and Rescue Service" (Cm 5808), published in June 2003, subsequently announced that responsibility for the fire and rescue service will transfer to a regional level in regions which choose to have an elected assembly. Other than this element, the powers of elected regional assemblies will not be drawn from local authorities.

Regional Economic Disparities

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he has taken since 1997 to close economic disparities between the English regions.

Nick Raynsford: The Government have pursued an active regional policy since 1997 by:
	Setting up the Regional Development Agencies to promote economic development and regeneration in the regions and supporting their work with £1.8 billion (for 2003–04) in annual funding ;
	Facilitating the establishment of voluntary regional chambers/assemblies, and developing the role of Government Offices;
	Announcing proposals for directly elected regional assemblies in those regions that wish to have them which will assist in improving regional economic performance;
	Putting in place a stable macroeconomic framework to provide an essential basis for economic growth both nationally and regionally;
	Agreeing a PSA target to make sustainable improvements in the economic performance of all English regions and to reduce the persistent gap in growth rates between the regions;
	Commissioning Sir Michael Lyons to make recommendations on the relocation of- civil service and other public sector posts to the English regions.

Regional Government

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the total number of staff working in the Government Office for the Regions in each region is; what change in staff numbers there would be in regions where an elected regional assembly is established; and what the total savings would be consequent on these reductions.

Yvette Cooper: The total number of staff currently working in the Government Office by region is:
	
		
			 Government Office Number of staff 
		
		
			 London 296 
			 East 266 
			 West Midlands 320 
			 East Midlands 283 
			 North West 351 
			 North East 256 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 306 
			 South West 344 
			 South East 320 
		
	
	The number of people that may transfer from each Government Office when an elected assembly is created will vary between regions. But it will probably be between 60 to 100, based on existing staffing levels for the activities that would be expected to transfer to an elected regional assembly, including responsibility for administering EU structural funds.
	It is estimated that about £5 million per year of the running costs of regional assemblies will be directly off-set because staff will be transferring from existing bodies, including the region's Government Office.

Regional Government

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what additional scrutiny the regional chambers in each of the English regions have undertaken since 2001.

Nick Raynsford: Since 2001, the regional chambers have undertaken a variety of scrutiny activities in respect of the work of the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs), funded by Government grant. Chambers report to the region on the work of the RDAs and provide recommendations that seek to improve their effectiveness.
	The reports and recommendations arising from these activities are published and widely disseminated to regional partners. Chambers usually issue between two and four reports every year.

Rehousing (Brent)

Sarah Teather: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average waiting time for a person to be rehoused in Brent was in each year since 1997.

Keith Hill: The information on the average waiting time for a person to be rehoused in Brent is not held centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Rehousing (Brent)

Sarah Teather: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many people are on the housing list waiting to be rehoused in Brent.

Keith Hill: Local authorities in England report the numbers of households on their housing waiting list (excluding tenants awaiting a transfer) as at 1 April in their annual Housing Investment programme return. As at 1 April 2003 the latest reported figures are 13,425.

Skills Funding

Philip Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether it is his policy that powers and funding in relation to skills should transfer from Learning and Skills Councils to elected regional assemblies.

Nick Raynsford: The powers and responsibilities of elected regional assemblies were set out in the White Paper, "Your Region, Your Choice": "Revitalising the English Regions" (Cm 5511). Paragraph 4.29 sets out the responsibilities elected regional assemblies will have for learning and skills.

Telecoms Companies

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many telecommunication companies have been overcharged in business rates in the last five years; and how much was repaid to them on appeal in each year.

Phil Hope: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Thames Gateway

John Austin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what discussions he has had with the Association of British Insurers regarding flood risk in the Thames Gateway Development Area; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Hill: The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has regular meetings with my hon. Friend, the Member for Scunthorpe (Mr. Morley), to discuss flood management issues generally. Officials at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will shortly be discussing flood management issues in the Thames Gateway growth area with the ABI.

HEALTH

Alendronate

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the clinical efficacy of Alendronate (Fosamax) in the treatment of osteoporosis, following trials at Manchester Royal Infirmary.

Stephen Ladyman: holding answer 20 January 2004
	The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) have been looking at five osteoporosis drugs, including Fosamax (Alendronate), as part of a technology appraisal. Their draft recommendations are currently out for consultation. NICE has a key role to play in widening choice. Patients and carers need clear authoritative advice on the sort of care that might be appropriate for them and the standards of care they can expect from the national health service. NICE is due to publish its technology appraisal on drug therapies for osteoporosis in June 2004.

Ambulance Services

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions have taken place between the Mersey Regional Ambulance Service and the Greater Manchester Ambulance Service on improving (a) the handling of 999 calls and (b) other matters relating to ambulance services.

Melanie Johnson: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Antibiotics

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what antibiotic usage was for each NHS hospital in England in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by specialty; and if he will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: This data is not collected centrally.

Cancer

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many incidents of skin cancer there have been in the United Kingdom in each of the last five years; and what assessment he has made (a) to determine the causes of skin cancer and (b) to determine the action needed to reduce the incidence of skin cancer.

Melanie Johnson: Data on the number of incidents of skin cancer overall are not available in the form requested. Cancer registrations for non-melanoma skin cancer are unreliable and incomplete as the registers are being continuously updated retrospectively.
	The number of registrations of newly diagnosed cases of malignant melanoma of the skin in the United Kingdom for each of the last five years are shown in the table.
	
		Registrations of newly diagnosed cases for skin cancer in the United Kingdom, 1996–2000(46)
		
			  Malignant melanoma of the skin(47) 
		
		
			 1996 5,700 
			 1997 6,000 
			 1998 6,100 
			 1999 6,000 
			 2000 7,000 
		
	
	(46) Figures rounded to nearest 100.
	(47) International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) code C43.
	Sources:
	1. Office for National Statistics.
	2. Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit.
	3. Scottish Cancer Registry.
	4. Northern Ireland Cancer Registry.
	A new sun awareness initiative, SunSmart, was launched on 27 March 2003 by Cancer Research UK to make the public aware of the dangers of exposure to the sun. The campaign is based on the successful SunSmart campaign in Australia. The campaign has received funding from the United Kingdom Health Departments' this year. We will be providing further funding for the campaign for next summertime.
	The campaign's aim is to increase the profile of the issue of skin cancer and methods of effective sun protection. The key objectives are to increase knowledge of the causes of skin cancer, to increase awareness of actions that can be taken to prevent skin cancer and to influence positively attitudes to sun protection.
	The Department has separately developed the SunSafe web pages in 2002, designed with children in mind. These are available on the Department's website at: www.doh.gov.uk/sunsafe
	Information is also contained on the Wired For Health website at: www.wiredforhealth.gov.uk/teaching/sun/intro.html
	We continue to fund annually the Meteorological Office to provide the daily ultra-violet index in the media (television, radio, Meteorological Office website).
	The Department also provides core funding to the National Radiological Protection Board, which provides expertise on ultra-violet radiation issues.

Cancer

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many incidents of lung and cervical cancer there were in the North West in each of the last five years; and what action has been taken in the North West (a) to prevent cancer, (b) to inform the public about the causes of cancer, (c) to provide equipment and services to treat cancer and (d) to provide palliative care for patients who are terminally ill.

Melanie Johnson: The information requested on lung cancer and cervical cancer in the North West is shown in the tables.
	
		1. Primary Diagnosis (ICD10 code C34) Lung Cancer: Finished in-year admission episodes by regional office of treatment—NHS hospitals in England, 1998–99 to 2002–03
		
			  North West Regional Office Unknown 
		
		
			 1998–99 16,023 — 
			 1999–2000 5,088 — 
			 2000–01 5,878 — 
			 2001–02 6,881 — 
			 2002–03 7,299 1,163 
		
	
	
		2. Primary Diagnosis (ICD10 code C53) Cervical Cancer: Finished in-year admission episodes by regional office of treatment—NHS hospitals in England, 1998–99 to 2002–03
		
			  North West Regional Office Unknown 
		
		
			 1998–99 2,415 — 
			 1999–2000 672 — 
			 2000–01 691 — 
			 2001–02 718 — 
			 2002–03 796 81 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Finished in-year admissions—a finished in-year admission is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider, excluding admissions beginning before 1 April at the start of the data year. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year diagnosis (Primary Diagnosis)—The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 14 (seven prior to 2002–03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital.
	2. Grossing—figures are grossed for both coverage and missing/invalid clinical data, except for 2001–02 and 2002–03, which are not yet adjusted for shortfalls.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.
	Information about the Merseyside and Cheshire Cancer Network and its work can be found in its annual report, which is available on www.mccn.nhs.uk.

Care Provision

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures the Government is taking to ensure that there is provision in place in (a) residential and (b) domiciliary care settings to provide sufficient care to cover the projected increase in the number of those requiring it.

Stephen Ladyman: The Planning and Priorities Framework 2003–06 sets a target for local councils to increase the number of those supported intensively to live at home to 30 per cent, of the total being supported by social services at home or in residential care. The average annual increase in resources for personal social services of six per cent, over these three years is consistent with this target. It is for local councils to use these increased resources to ensure that the right amount and range of care is made available, taking account of local circumstances and priorities.

Cataracts

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action he is taking to reduce the costs of NHS cataract services to a level equivalent to that being achieved by Netcare.

John Hutton: holding answer 19 January 2004
	We are developing a nationally set tariff for most national health services activity, including cataract activity, based on NHS average prices. All NHS trusts will be expected to achieve tariff by 2008.
	Through the treatment centre programme and the introduction of a single agreed care pathway for cataract we are aiming to maximise productivity, improve clinical outcomes and reduce variation in cost and quality.

Cataracts

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many patients are waiting for cataract operations;
	(2)  how many patients joined the waiting list for cataract operations in each of the last five years.

John Hutton: Central waiting list returns are collected by specialty, for example, ophthalmology. Information on the number of patients waiting for cataract operations specifically is therefore not available, as cataract operations are a procedure within ophthalmology.

Cataracts

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cataract operations were carried out in each of the last five years.

John Hutton: Published information on the number of hospital admissions for cataract operations is available up to 2002–03. The number of operations in each of the last five years for which information is available is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number of finished episodes 
		
		
			 2002–03 270,605 
			 2001–02 247,847 
			 2000–01 237,507 
			 1999–2000 201,020 
			 1998–99 201,682 
		
	
	This information is available on the Department's web-site under hospital episode statistics.

Children's Diets

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out for each of the last 10 years for (a) England, (b) each NHS region and (c) each strategic health authority the number and proportion of (i) boys, (ii) girls, and (iii) children aged (A) 4–5, (B) 6–7, (C) 8–9, (D) 10–11, (E) 12–13, (F) 14–15 and (G) 16–17 who have nothing to eat before school (1) once a week, (2) twice a week, (3) three days a week, (4) four days a week, (5) every school day and (6) at weekends.

Melanie Johnson: Information is not collected in the form requested. However, the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, which carried out a survey in 1997 of the food consumption of young people aged four to 18 years, found that the youngest group of children, aged four to six years, were significantly more likely than the oldest group, aged 15 to 18 years, to have eaten breakfast cereals (not whole-grain or high fibre types). Boys were more likely than girls to eat non-whole-grain or high fibre cereals—74 per cent, to 64 per cent.

Civil Service (Disabled People)

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out the number of employees in his Department who have a disability, broken down by disability type.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Disability broken down by disability type Total number of employees 
		
		
			 Visual impairment 20 
			 Hearing impairment 30 
			 Speech impairment 3 
			 Walking impairment 13 
			 Physical co-ordination impairment 26 
			 Reduced physical capacity 26 
			 Severe disfigurement 1 
			 Learning difficulties 3 
			 Mental illness 21 
			 Progressive conditions 20 
			 Neurological conditions 12 
			 Other(48) 28 
		
	
	(48) This figure refers either to an unspecified disability or a disability that is outside of the categories for which data is collected.
	Staff in the Department provide information on disability on a voluntary basis so the figures in the table may not reflect the total number of staff who have a disability.

Colonoscopy

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of those undertaking colonoscopy had been fully trained to do so in the latest year for which figures are available.

John Hutton: All professional staff who undertake colonoscopy procedures have received the appropriate training to do so. A national initiative to improve standards of training for all endoscopic procedures is under way. £9 million has been made available over the next three years.
	Information about the number of staff who undertake colonoscopy is not held centrally.

Departmental Staff

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff in his Department work in (a) the West Midlands and (b) North Staffordshire.

Rosie Winterton: The Department has 56 staff who work in the West Midlands, including those who work in North Staffordshire. The number of staff working in North Staffordshire is not recorded separately.

Departmental Website

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria his Department uses when deciding whether a leaflet which it publishes is to be made available only on its website.

Rosie Winterton: Leaflets, being short publications primarily intended for a public audience, are printed. However, it is our policy to make the content of these and other publications available on the Department of Health's web-site and other departmental-commissioned web-sites, in line with the Government's e-delivery objectives.
	There are occasions when other types of publications are made available only electronically. In this case, consideration of audience access to the internet is important and documents may be published exclusively on the web when the intended audience is a specialist one with ready access to the internet.

Digital Hearing Aids

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 5 January to questions, reference 145050 and 145051, if he will list those audiology departments in England that do not fit digital hearing aids routinely.

Stephen Ladyman: holding answer 13 January 2004
	The Department of Health does not hold centrally a list of audiology departments in England. However, details of those audiology departments that are or will be involved in the modernising hearing aid services project are available at www.mhas.info. Details have been placed in the Library.

Electronic Recruitment

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Department will retain the intellectual property rights for the services developed by third parties for the NHS electronic recruitment project.

John Hutton: The electronic recruitment service for the national health service will be provided by Methods Consulting Ltd. under contract to the Department of Health for five years from 11 August 2003. Methods Consulting owns the intellectual property.

Eye Infections

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether contact lens wearers are at risk, when washing their face with tap water, of developing a serious eye infection caused by the water borne amoeba acanthamoeba keratitis; and what is being done to reduce the incidence of acanthamoeba keratitis in tap water.

Rosie Winterton: There is always a risk of contracting acanthamoeba keratitis when contact lenses are exposed to water as acanthamoeba can be found in chlorinated swimming pools, baths, showers and bottled water as well as in domestic tap water; with approximately one in 30,000 contact lens wearers contracting the disease. It is believed that any increased risk for contact lens wearers by washing their face with tap water is minimal.
	Contact lens solutions have been developed in recent years to take account of this. All contact lens wearers are advised to only use recognised cleaning solutions and follow practitioners' directions when cleaning their lenses.
	Surface water is treated in a manner to minimise the risk of parasites entering the distribution system and the main risk to water lies with 'natural' contamination of water in domestic storage.

Foundation Hospitals

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 12 January 2004, Official Report, columns 602–3W, on foundation hospitals, whether guidance and best practice will be automatically sent to foundation hospital trusts without the need for a specific request.

John Hutton: National health service foundation trusts will, like NHS trusts, receive the NHS Chief Executive's bulletin. This includes information on all Departmental guidance issued, which can be accessed through the Department's website.

General Medical Council

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the individuals and organisations from which his Department, its executive agencies and the non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible received a response to the consultation, Reform of the General Medical Council: a paper for consultation.

John Hutton: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The Department of Health received responses to its consultation on the Reform of the General Medical Council from the following:
	Academy of Medical Royal Colleges
	Association of Surgeons of GB and Ireland
	British Medical Association (BMA)
	BMA Wales
	Department of Health, Northern Ireland
	General Chiropractic Council
	General Medical Council
	Joint Consultants Committee
	Medical Defence Union
	Medical Defence Organisation
	Medical Practitioners' Union
	Royal College of Anaesthetists
	Royal College of General Practitioners
	Royal College of Midwives
	Royal College of Nursing
	Royal College of Ophthalmologists
	Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
	Royal College of Pathologists
	Royal College of Physicians
	Royal College of Physicians (Edinburgh)
	Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow
	Royal College of Radiologists
	Royal College of Surgeons
	Association of Community Health Councils for England and Wales
	Consumers' Association
	Diabetes UK
	Harrogate CHC
	National Consumer Council
	North Staffordshire CHC
	Welsh Consumer Council
	Joint Committee on Postgraduate Training and General Practice
	UK Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education
	West Midlands Deanery
	Association of British Pharmaceutical Industries
	National Clinical Assessment Authority
	National Patient Safety Agency
	Privy Council Office
	The Wellcome Trust
	Amber Valley Primary Care Trust
	Basildon PCT
	Eastern Wakefield PCT
	Gloucester Partnership NHS Trust
	Harrow PCT
	Kennet and North Wilts PCT
	Lewisham PCT
	North Surrey PCT
	North East London Health Authority
	Northamptonshire Heartlands NHS Trust
	Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust
	Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare NHS Trust
	Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich
	Royal London Hospital
	South East London Strategic Health Authority
	South Gloucestershire PCT
	SW London and St. Georges Mental Health NHS Trust
	Wakefield West PCT
	West Yorkshire Health Authority
	Weston Area Health NHS Trust
	Dr. W. I. Jones
	Mr. T. Benson
	Dr. J. Cawson
	Dr. P. Anastassiadis
	Dr. J. Jin
	Dr. A .Robbins

General Practitioners

Harry Barnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many complaints the Health Service Ombudsman has received about general practitioners removing patients from their practice lists in each of the past five years; how many of these complaints led to investigations; how many investigations led to criticisms of the general practitioners' decisions; and how many patients have then been reinstated on to the lists of the general practitioners concerned.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not held by the Department. The Health Service Ombudsman publishes information about the handling of cases in her annual report, copies of which are available in the Library and on the Ombudsman's website at: www. ombudsman.org.uk

General Practitioners

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with primary care trusts on night-time cover following the introduction of the new contract for general practitioners.

John Hutton: The Department is working closely with strategic health authorities to ensure that primary care trusts and local providers of out of hours medical services are ready to accommodate the changes arising from the new general medical services contract.

Haemoglobinopathies

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  for what reason there is no centre for information, screening and support on haemoglobinopathy in Havering;
	(2)  for what reason Havering council does not provide services for sickle cell and thalassaemia support groups;
	(3)  for what reason there is no integrated comprehensive network care for sickle cell and thalassaemia sufferers in Havering.

John Hutton: It is Department of Health policy, within the framework set out in the NHS Plan and the "Shifting the Balance of Power" initiative, to devolve funding decisions to the front line. It is now for primary care trusts (PCTs), in partnership with strategic health authorities (SHAs) and their local stakeholders, to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health based on the specialised knowledge they have of the local community.
	However, I understand from the North East London SHA that Havering is regarded as a priority area for introducing screening for haemoglobinopathies. Neonatal screening started across the North East London SHA from 1 September 2003 and antenatal screening is planned to start from April 2004.
	I am informed by North East London SHA that sickle cell and thalassaemia services are at present provided by a specialist unit based at Newham General Hospital. The North East London sector wide network is currently considering proposals for Havering PCT to link into the Newham sickle cell and thalassaemia service, with satellite basis for local access.
	There is also a support group for sickle cell and thalassaemia, based in Romford, which is part of the Sickle Cell Society, which is part funded by the local authority.

Haemoglobinopathies

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what preparations are being made for the Government's health plan on the Haemoglobinopathy Screening Programme for pregnant women and neonates;
	(2)  where the special designated team to implement the Haemoglobinopathy Screening Programme is based.

Melanie Johnson: Local implementation of the national health service sickle cell and thalassaemia screening programme in England is being supported by a UK National Screening Committee development programme. The programme is being developed in partnership with the key community and voluntary sector stakeholders.
	Key elements of the national work include developing laboratory services, standards and quality assurance, an education and training strategy for professionals and identifying and involving communities, professionals, women and their partners.
	The national team supporting the NHS implementation is based at the Department of Public Health Sciences at Guy's, King's and St. Thomas' School of Medicine in London.

Haemoglobinopathies

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the Government plans to address the change in the numbers of sickle cell and thalassaemia sufferers travelling to inner London hospitals to seek medical attention.

John Hutton: The Department has already started to do preliminary work on looking at services for haemoglobinopathy patients.
	The Department is working with professional organisations to consider proposals for clinical networks of services to be developed allowing patients to be cared for locally. However, it will ultimately be a decision for the primary care trusts, which have discretion over where best to commission health care from national health service hospitals or other public, private or voluntary sector health care providers.

Healthcare Costs (Patient Contributions)

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in poor health in England contributed to the cost of their healthcare on the last date for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: We do not collect information on the number of people who contribute to the cost of their health care through national health service charges.

Health Forums

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much is being spent in supporting patient and public involvement at local level.

Rosie Winterton: It is not possible to provide this information, as individual NHS trusts and primary care trusts decide how much to invest in patient and public involvement. The Government, however, have made available £35.4 million to the Commission for Patient and Public involvement in Health for 2003–04.

Health Forums

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes will be required to patient and public involvement in health forums established in NHS trusts which gain foundation status.

Rosie Winterton: The Health and Social Care (Community Standards) Act 2003 requires a patients' forum to be established for national health service foundation trusts. When a NHS trust becomes a NHS foundation trust, it is intended that the membership of the patients' forum will remain the same and the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health will notify members that they are now members of a NHS foundation trust patients' forum.

Health Forums

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health renamed the local network providers as forum support organisations; and for what reasons the change was made.

Rosie Winterton: Since 1 December 2003, local network providers have been known as forum support organisations because the new name more accurately reflects their purpose of providing practical support to patients' forums.

Health Forums

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement Forums monitors and assesses the performance of forum support organisations.

Rosie Winterton: The regional centres of the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health are responsible for managing the contracts placed with the forum support organisations—this includes performance management of those contracts.

Health Professionals

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many additional (a) doctors, (b) nurses and (c) matrons have been employed (i) in each region and (ii) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland since (A) 1997 and (B) 2001.

John Hutton: Information on the number of doctors and nurses in England, each Government Office Region and within County Durham and Tees Valley and Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Strategic Health Authorities areas for the years requested is shown in the table. Separate information is not collected centrally on the number of matrons employed in the national health service.
	
		NHS doctors(49)by Government Office Region -- England(50) Number (headcount)
		
			   Change 
			  1997 2001 2002 1997–2002 2001–02 
		
		
			  
			  
			 England 89,619 99,169 103,350 13,731 4,181 
			 North East 5,033 5,656 5,823 790 167 
			 Of which:  
			 County Durham and Tees Valley 2,015 2,228 2,252 237 24 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear 3,018 3,428 3,571 553 143 
			   
			 North West 12,870 14,082 14,497 1,627 415 
			 Yorkshire and the Number 9,057 10,075 10,601 1,544 526 
			 East Midlands 6,691 7,162 7,343 652 181 
			 West Midlands 8,916 9,963 10,387 1,471 424 
			 East of England 8,329 9,125 9,590 1,261 465 
			 London 17,107 19,048 19,872 2,765 824 
			 South East 13,056 14,313 15,028 1,972 715 
			 South West 8,277 9,545 10,042 1,765 497 
			 Special Health Authorities and Other Statutory Bodies 283 200 167 -116 -33 
		
	
	(49) Excludes GP Retainers and medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants most of whom are also GPs working part-time in hospitals.
	(50) 1997 GPs data as at 1 October 1997, all other data as at 30 September.
	Sources:
	Department of Health medical and dental workforce census.
	General and Personal Medical Services Statistics.
	
		NHS hospital and community health services: Qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff, and Practice Nurses employed by UPEs(51) by Government Office Region -- England(52) Number (headcount)
		
			 Change 
			  1997 2001 2002 1997–2002 2001–02 
		
		
			 England 318,856 350,381 367,520 48,664 17,139 
			 North East 18,390 20,727 21,504 3,114 777 
			 Of which:  
			 County Durham and Tees Valley SHA 7,524 8,350 8,647 1,123 297 
			 Northumberland Tyne and Wear SHA 10,866 12,377 12,857 1,991 480 
			 Northwest 48,903 52,507 55,989 7,086 3,482 
			 Yorkshire and the Number 33,606 36,064 37,803 4,197 1,739 
			 East Midlands 24,275 26,251 27,597 3,322 1,346 
			 West Midlands 33,132 37,143 38,949 5,817 1,806 
			 East of England 28,481 33,028 34,651 6,170 1,623 
			 London 52,993 58,000 60,638 7,645 2,638 
			 South East 46,702 51,202 53,397 6,695 2,195 
			 South West 31,867 34,868 36,461 4,594 1,593 
			 Special Health Authorities and Other Statutory Bodies 506 591 531 25 -60 
		
	
	(51) UPEs include GMS Unrestricted Principals, PMS Contracted GPs and PMS Salaried GPs.
	(52) 1997 practice nurse data as at 1 October 1997, all other data as at 30 September.
	Notes:
	1. Government Office Regions are based on grouped Strategic Health Authority areas.
	2. 1997 and 2001 include estimated data for County Durham and Tees Valley based upon the proportioning of staff who moved from Northallerton NHS Trust.
	3. Other Government Office Regions include estimated data for Trent, North West London, Cheshire and Merseyside SHA's and Special Health Authorities based on staff at Rampton, Broadmoor and Ashworth Special Hospitals.
	Sources:
	Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census.
	Department of Health General and Personal Medical Services Statistics.

Health Services (Lancashire)

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the impact population growth will have on Chorley and South Ribble primary care trust; and what extra monies will be made available;
	(2)  what extra staff and funding at Chorley Hospital he plans to make available to meet population growth in Chorley;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the impact that population growth in Chorley will have on Chorley Hospital.

Melanie Johnson: An assessment of the impact of population growth on the local health economy has been made by Lancashire Teaching Hospitals National Health Services Trust. It is noted from population forecasts provided by local councils that the population is due to decline slowly over the 10 years from 2001. There is no perceived impact on the local health economy, including Chorley and South Ribble Primary Care Trust (PCTs), or Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and its services across Chorley, South Ribble or Preston, and Chorley Hospital in particular.
	For each round of allocations, the weighted capitation formula used to inform funding for PCTs is updated to take account of the best available measure of population from the Office for National Statistics.
	Revenue allocations for PCTs covering the period 2003–04 to 2005–06 were announced on 11 December 2002. There are no plans to revisit these allocations.
	Any changes in population figures will be used for the next round of allocations. We will commence preparatory work on the next round of allocations early this year.

Healthy Living Centres

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 18 December 2003, Official Report, column 1124W, on healthy living centres, what funding he is providing for centres (a) providing activities covering diet and nutrition and (b) offering physical and sporting activities.

Melanie Johnson: 114 healthy living centres—167 in the United Kingdom—are providing activities covering diet and nutrition and 207 healthy living centres—282 in the UK—are offering physical and sporting activities. A substantial number of health living centres are addressing all of these: diet, nutrition and physical activity. Healthy living centres are funded through the New Opportunities Fund and do not receive any central funding from Department of Health.

Hip and Knee Replacements

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost per operation is for (a) hip and (b) knee replacements in each hospital trust; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The information requested has been placed in Library. The table contains the average unit costs (per operation) for each national health service trust in England for primary hip replacements and primary knee replacements where the operation is undertaken as an elective (planned) admission.
	The data source is the Reference Costs 2002 Collection, relating to the financial year 2001–02. This is the most current data available in the public domain.
	Calculation of the costs provided are based on all activity and costs associated with each procedure, regardless of the specialty in which the activity is recorded.

Hospital-acquired Infection

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of patients with MRSA bacteraemia in NHS hospitals in England died of their infection in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and what comparable figures his Department has collated regarding mortality in other countries.

Melanie Johnson: Information on deaths from methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemias is not routinely available. Currently, mortality data can only be provided by enhanced surveillance or special studies. We do not have figures for other countries.

Hospital-acquired Infection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  which members of staff and at what level of seniority will be filling the new posts of directors of infection control;
	(2)  how the performance of the newly created directors of infection control will be managed; and by whom;
	(3)  whether it is his policy that existing consultant microbiologists or infection control nurses will be redeployed to the new posts of directors of infection control.

Melanie Johnson: The director of infection prevention and control is not a new post but an extra responsibility for an existing senior health professional within every organisation providing national health service services. They will:
	report directly to the chief executive and the board and not through any other officer;
	have the authority to challenge inappropriate clinical hygiene practice as well as antibiotic prescribing decisions;
	assess the impact of all existing and new policies and plans on infection and make recommendations for change; and
	be an integral member of the organisation's clinical governance and patient safety teams and structures.
	We would expect consultant microbiologists and infection control nurses to be among the healthcare professionals taking on this role but designation of the new director is a local decision. However, what is important is that the individuals concerned have the appropriate expertise and authority to act to reduce infection rates.
	Strategic health authorities will monitor performance against the objectives of "Winning ways" and the Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection will be asked to give priority to assessing NHS performance in reducing health care associated infection.

Human Tissue Authority

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date the Retained Organs Commission will be wound up; on what date he proposes that a shadow Human Tissue Authority will be created; and what transitional arrangements he will put in place to bridge any gap between these two dates.

Rosie Winterton: The Human Tissue Bill, which received its second reading on 15 January 2004, sets out plans to create a Human Tissue Authority. The intention is to establish a shadow authority, in advance of the new authority, once the Bill receives Royal Assent.
	The Retained Organs Commission was scheduled to close on 31 March 2003. It was extended for a further year until 31 March 2004 to enable it to complete its work.
	The aims of the Commission are primarily to oversee national health service arrangements for the return of human organs and tissue and to ensure that any returns reflect families' wishes and take place promptly and sensitively. As the Commission's support to the NHS in dealing with inquiries from families will cease, it is currently engaging with trusts and strategic health authorities (SHAs) to secure the sensitive transfer of these responsibilities to them before it closes.
	The Commission also issues guidance, and advises Government on the retention and use of human organs and tissue from post-mortems. It will issue final guidance to SHAs and trusts before it closes and provide a final report to Government. Any subsequent guidance in this area will be issued by the Department of Health or by the Human Tissue Authority in due course.

Independent Diagnostic and Treatment Centres

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to disclose information concerning the (a) financial and (b) clinical performance of independent diagnostic and treatment centres on the same basis as information collected and reported on direct NHS services.

John Hutton: Providers of independent sector treatment centres will be paid a fixed price for the period of the contract to provide an agreed number of procedures. They will be expected to provide full activity and outcome information, as required for hospital episode statistics data. The Department has also developed a national, standardised set of performance indicators for independent sector treatment centres.

Independent Diagnostic and Treatment Centres

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library copies of the performance standards set for the first wave of independent diagnostic and treatment centres.

John Hutton: Performance standards for the first wave of independent sector treatment centres are part of the project agreement for the contract between national health service sponsors and providers. The performance standards are subject to continuing commercial negotiation and will be placed in the Library once commercial agreement has been reached on all projects.

Influenza

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 3 December 2003, Official Report, column 77W, on influenza, what steps have been taken to ensure there are adequate supplies of medication to treat cases of influenza.

Melanie Johnson: holding answer 8 December 2003
	Officials are in regular contact with manufacturers to monitor the quantities of antiviral medications they have in stock.

IT Contracts

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list information technology contracts in his Department above £20 million in each of the last 10 years; what the inception date for each system was; when it became fully functional; when it became fully debugged; and what the cost of over-runs has been.

John Hutton: The information technology (IT) contracts let by the Department of Health and its arms length bodies in the last 10 years in excess of £20 million are shown in the table. Costs are shown as whole life costs and may, therefore, include elements of internal costs. A number of the contracts listed are IT framework contracts which National Health Service organisations can utilise to deliver IT infrastructure and software services.
	Information about when NHS systems became fully debugged and the cost of over-runs is not held centrally.
	
		
			  Contract Whole life cost (£m) Inception date Fully functional 
		
		
			 1994 (None awarded in 1994)
			 1995 NHSNet central framework contract with BT and Cable & Wireless 129.6 1995 7–10 year contract 1996 for BT 1997 for Cable & Wireless 
			  Nation-Wide Clearing Service 30.0 1996 8 year contract (basic contract period of 5 years plus option to extend for 3 years). 
			 1996 Infrastructure Management Services Framework agreement 40.0 1996 5 year contract with Fujitsu to support DH infrastructure services, with optional extension up to 7 years 
			 1997–99 (None awarded in 1997–99)
			 2000 Project Connect (formerly GPNet). 150.0 2000 6 year contract, with gradual rollout from date of contract signature in December 2000. This funding represents the cost of Wide Area Networks to connect GPs to NHSNet. In addition to this, £318 million more was committed to the provision of the necessary Local Area Networks within each GP practice. However, as this effectively involved one contract per practice, all of this money was committed in small contracts. 
			  Clinical Messaging 50.0 2000 7 year contract. Gradual rollout from 2000. 
			  NHS Direct—Clinical Decision Support Software 22.3 2000 7 year contract. The level of cash-releasing benefits means that the contract pays for itself. 
			 2001 Microsoft software enterprise agreement 138.6 2001 3 year contract. This is a software purchase contract 
			  Electronic Staff Record 325.0 2001 10 year contract. Gradual rollout from 2001 
			 2002 Shared Services Centres two pilot centres 21.0 2002 2 year contract 
			  NHSNet purchase of additional bandwidth 96.5 2002 5 year contract. Gradual rollout from 2002 
			  Email and directory services 326.2 2002 10 year contract. System scheduled to be completely rolled out by March 2003 
			  Dental Practice Board—reprocurement of IT systems 40.0 2003 Two related contracts, both running for 7 years—one with IBM (£31. 9m) and one with Astron (formerly Hays) (8. 1m) 
			  Infrastructure Management Services Framework Agreement 60 2002 7 year contract with CSC to support DH IT infrastructure services, with optional extension up to 10 years. 
			 2003 NHS Direct intelligent phones 29.7 2003 6 year contract 
			  National Programme: National Electronic Booking System 64.5(core services) October 2003 5 year contract. National rollout complete 2005. Options exist for extensions to contract length and range of services provided. 
			  National Programme: NHS Care Record Service (NCRS) "data spine" 620 December 2003 9 year contract plus one year optional extension. 
			  National Programme: NCRS, London Cluster 996(core services) December 2003 9 year contract plus one year optional extension. 
			  National Programme: NCRS, North East Cluster 1,099(core services) December 2003 9 year contract plus one year optional extension. 
			  National Programme: NCRS, North West and West Midlands Cluster 973(core services) December 2003 9 year contract plus one year optional extension 
			  National Programme: NCRS, Eastern Cluster 934(core services) December 2003 9 year contract plus one year optional extension 
			 2004 National Programme: NCRS, South Cluster  Contract yetto be signed  
			  National Programme: New National Network (N3) infrastructure  Contract yetto be signed

Lancashire Ambulance Service

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times ambulance services had 999 calls passed to them by BT operators who were unable to connect the call to the Lancashire Ambulance Service in the last 12 months.

Melanie Johnson: The information requested is not held centrally.

Medical Records

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance was available in the (a) 1970s and (b) 1980s in respect of routine recording of myodil injections on medical records; and if he will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: We are unaware of any specific guidance available in the 1970s or 1980s on the routine recording of Myodil injections on medical records.

Memory Clinics

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he collates on access to memory clinics in England.

Stephen Ladyman: No information is collected centrally on access to memory clinics.

Meningitis

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made towards the introduction of a meningitis B vaccine.

Melanie Johnson: No vaccine is yet available to protect against meningitis B. However, a number of candidate vaccines are being developed. The Health Protection Agency is working closely with manufacturers to ensure the prompt evaluation of the candidate vaccines as they become available. We are also monitoring developments in this area abroad.

Sensory Impairment

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people aged 65 years and over who suffer from sensory impairment, broken down by sense.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department collects statistics on the numbers of people in England who are registered with councils as blind, partially sighted, deaf and hard of hearing. The numbers of people over 65 years so registered, as at 31 March 2003, were: blind—121,115; partially sighted—22,165; deaf—19,030, hard of hearing—116,070. Registration is voluntary.

Mental Health

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many care homes are registered as catering for the needs of the elderly mentally infirm.

Stephen Ladyman: Data on the number of care homes that are registered as catering for the needs of the elderly mentally infirm are not centrally available. The available information is shown in the table.
	Figures for later years have been collected by the National Care Standards Commission, but comparable details are not available.
	
		Table: Number of care homes primarily for people with mental illness—England at 31 March 2001
		
			  Residential(53) Nursing(54) 
		
		
			 18 and over 3,050 820 
			 Of which:   
			 65 and over 1,130 (55)— 
		
	
	(53) Includes dual registered homes
	(54) Excludes dual registered homes
	(55) Not available
	Source:
	DH forms RA and RH(N)

Mental Health

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of prisoners with severe mental illness have a care plan.

Stephen Ladyman: National health service mental health in-reach teams will be in place in some 90 prisons in England by March 2004, covering those establishments where mental health need is greatest. Our expectation is that where such teams are fully operational, care plans will have been drawn up for all prisoners with severe mental illness.

NHS Direct

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what statistics he has collated on the use of NHS Direct in Lancashire, broken down by constituency.

Rosie Winterton: The statistics collated by NHS Direct North West Coast for the last six months—1 July to 31 December 2003—broken down by constituencies, are shown in the table.
	
		
			 Constituency Number of calls 
		
		
			 Blackburn 31,632 
			 Blackpool 6,343 
			 Burnley 4,473 
			 Chorley 1,151 
			 Darwen 4,096 
			 Hyndburn 7,487 
			 Lancaster and Wyre 4,181 
			 Morecambe and Lunesdale 1,321 
			 Preston 18,289 
			 Ribble Valley 1,120 
			 Total 80,093

NHS Pay (Leeds)

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) male and (b) female NHS employees in Leeds are paid (i) below £5,000, (ii) £5,001-£10,000, (iii) £10,001-£12,500, (iv) £12,501-£15,000, (v) £15,001-£17,500, (vi) £17,501-£20,000, (vii) £20,001-£22,500, (viii) £22,501-£25,000, (ix) £25,001-£27,500, (x) £27,501-£30,000, (xi) £30,001-£35,000, (xii) £35,001-£40,000, (xiii) £40,001-£45,000, (xiv) £45,001-£50,000, (xv) £50,001-£60,000, (xvi) £60,001-£70,000, (xvii) £70,001-£80,000, (xviii) £80,001-£90,000, (xix) £90,001-£100,000, (xx) £100,001-£150,000, (xxi) £150,001-£200,000 and (xxii) above £200,000.

Melanie Johnson: This information is not held centrally.

NICE Guidance (Pregnancy)

Jane Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the National Institute for Clinical Excellence will publish guidance on managing problems in early pregnancy; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) published a clinical guideline entitled, "Ante-Natal Care: routine care for the healthy pregnant woman", on 22 October 2003. Full details of this guideline are available on the NICE website at www.nice.org.uk.

Nurses

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 8 January 2004, Official Report, column 467W, how many public health nurses there were in the NHS in each of the last 10 years.

John Hutton: holding answer 19 January 2004
	Workforce information currently collected by the Department does not identify either school nurses or communicable disease control nurses, two of the main groups of public health nurses. Health visitors are the only public health nurses separately identified in the non-medical workforce census. The following table shows the number of health visitors employed in the national health service since 1992.
	
		NHS hospital and community health services: Qualified health visitors in England as at 30 September each specified year
		
			  Headcount 
		
		
			 1992 12,038 
			 1993 12,059 
			 1994 11,548 
			 1995 12,079 
			 1996 12,350 
			 1997 12,410 
			 1998 12,572 
			 1999 12,800 
			 2000 12,827 
			 2001 13,053 
			 2002 12,774 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. A new classification of the non-medical workforce was introduced in 1995.
	2. Information based on this classification is not directly comparable with earlier years.
	Source:
	Department of Health Non-medical Workforce Census

Obesity

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding he has provided for (a) the Weight Wise website and (b) Weight Concern's toolkit on obesity.

Melanie Johnson: The Department of Health has provided £66,700 over two years to the British Dietetic Association for the development of the Weight Wise website. The website went live on 3 December 2003 and is designed to be used by both health professionals and members of the public.
	Funding of £130,000 over three years was provided for Weight Concern's toolkit on obesity. The funding was used to recruit experts in psychology, nutrition and exercise to develop materials, create a workbook to assist individuals and professionals managing obesity, and carry out a preliminary evaluation.
	Funding for both these pieces of work was provided through the Department's Section 64 grant scheme.

Operation Telic

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what percentage of military personnel serving in Operation Telic who have returned from Iraq have since received treatment for mental health problems;
	(2)  of those who suffered from mental health problems after participating in Operation Telic, how many suffered from and were treated for (a) depression, (b) post-traumatic stress disorder, (c) Gulf War Syndrome, (d) panic disorder, (e) anxiety disorder and (f) motor neurone disease;
	(3)  of those who suffered from mental illness on returning from Operation Telic, how many were treated (a) by the NHS and (b) privately.

Ivor Caplin: I have been asked to reply.
	This information is currently being collated. I expect to be able to write to the hon. Gentlemen shortly and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Pain Management Clinic (Guys and St. Thomas')

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that the waiting list for access to the INPUT pain management clinic at Guys and St. Thomas's hospital is reduced; and when he will respond to the letter from Mrs. Jackson of Christchurch dated 5 December 2003 on this subject.

John Hutton: Officials responded to Mrs. Jackson's letter of 5 December 2003 regarding the INPUT pain clinic on the 13 January 2004.
	I am assured by Guy's and St. Thomas' Hospitals National Health Service Trust that they have taken steps to reduce waiting times for the INPUT pain clinic:
	Extra clinic sessions have been added.
	All referrals have to be validated by the consultant.
	The non-general practitioner referral waiting list is currently being validated to ensure that patients still wish to attend for assessment.
	Improvements in the administration system mean it now provides better information about clinic slot availability and facilitates the offer of vacant slots to non-GP referral patients.
	Staff are now able to compile reports in order to manage clinics more effectively.
	A review of the systems for sending out-patient appointments has taken place and a reminder system will be introduced to minimise the number of appointment slots, which might otherwise be wasted if patients did not attend.
	To increase psychologist out-patient capacity, the weekly timetable for all psychologists is currently being reviewed, in order to identify how their workloads can be altered to allow more outpatient assessment time.
	The trust also plans to employ a service improvement facilitator to help improve the service provided by the clinic.

Practice Staff (Complaints)

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations his Department has received about the treatment of practice staff by general practitioners; what the complaints procedure is in the event of staff concerns; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: General practitioners are independent contractors to the national health service. They are responsible for employing their own staff, and for agreeing their terms and conditions of employment. Practice staff, like all other employees, have statutory employment rights which are enforceable by the employment tribunal.

Public Health

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the public health content of strategic health authority local development plans; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Strategic health authorities were required to produce local delivery plans to deliver the national priorities set out in "Improvement, Expansion and Reform: The next three years: Priorities and Planning Framework (PPF) 2003–2006." A copy is available in the Library.
	The plans cover a whole range of areas—improvements to cancer services; tackling coronary heart disease; reducing health inequalities and improving access to services—which will improve the public's health.

Public Health Laboratory Service

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the funding for the Public Health Laboratory Service was in each year from its establishment until 1996–97.

Melanie Johnson: The funding for the Public Health Laboratory Service is described in its annual report and accounts, copies of which are available in the Library.

Stroke (Gloucestershire)

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what facilities there are in the NHS in Gloucestershire to identify those most at risk from strokes; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: In line with our policy of Shifting the Balance of Power, it is now for primary care trusts, in partnership with health authorities and other local stakeholders, to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health, tackling health inequalities and modernising services, based on the specialised knowledge they have of the local community.
	I am informed by Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Strategic Health Authority that the National Health Service in Gloucestershire is involved in a wide range of prevention programmes, including exercise and diet, linked to health promotion. There is regular screening in primary and secondary care for example for high blood pressure, smoking and other familial factors with prescribing where appropriate. The NHS in Gloucestershire also participates in audits to monitor and improve practice in general practitioner surgeries and hospitals.

Stroke (Gloucestershire)

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what NHS services are offered to stroke victims in their homes; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: People who have experienced a stroke for the first time should be admitted to hospital for immediate assessment and to plan for their rehabilitation. Many stroke units are now developing early discharge schemes to help some people (usually those with satisfactory domestic caring arrangements) to return home at an early opportunity to continue rehabilitation at home for a few more weeks. Most disabled stroke patients who are discharged from hospital at any stage of their care will benefit from a period of post-discharge rehabilitation. This has been shown to stabilise the patient's function and make a small additional improvement in independence. During the period following discharge, there will also commonly be contact with mainstream health and social care community services. These will include: the patient's general practitioner; community nurses; and the home care service. These contacts often continue long-term for patients with persisting disability. The national service framework for older people has stipulated that stroke patients should have a review, performed by a stroke co-ordinator six months after discharge, to reassess their care needs.

Waiting Times

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cancer patients waited longer than two months between urgent general practitioner referral and first treatment in each of the last eight years.

Melanie Johnson: holding answer 22 January 2004
	The data requested are not available centrally.
	The NHS Cancer Plan sets out our strategy to reduce waiting times for cancer patients. A maximum two month wait from urgent referral to treatment was introduced for breast cancer in December 2002. Data on performance of this target has been reported from the first quarter of 2003–04 and is shown in the table.
	
		
			   Quarter 
			  Qtr 1(April-June 2003) Qtr 2(July-September 2003) 
		
		
			 Number of patients treated for breast cancer within two months of urgent referral by their GP 3,844 4,047 
			 Percentage of breast cancer patients treated within two months of urgent referral by their GP 96.8 97.8 
			 Number of patients treated for breast cancer during the quarter but not within two months of urgent referral by their GP 127 91 
		
	
	By 2005, all cancer patients will receive their first treatment within two months of urgent referral for suspected cancer by their general practitioner, except for a good clinical reason or through patient choice. Targets of one month from urgent referral for suspected cancer to the start of treatment were introduced in 2001 for testicular cancer, acute leukaemia and children's' cancers. Data on achievement of NHS Cancer Plan waiting times targets are published on the Department's website or strategic health authorities and trusts, at www.doh.gov.uk/cancerwaits.

Working Time Directive

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many new medical posts NHS hospital trusts have bid for to help respond to the EU Working Time Directive.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not available centrally.
	Strategic health authorities are currently working with their respective trusts locally on plans to achieve compliance for doctors in training from August 2004.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Infanticide

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many (a) women and (b) men are in prison having been convicted of causing the deaths of their own children;
	(2)  how many (a) women and (b) men have been convicted in each of the last 10 years for causing the deaths of their own children.

Paul Goggins: Available information is in the form of all suspects convicted of homicide by type of homicide and sentence. The latest 10 years data were published in "Criminal Statistics England and Wales 2001–2002: Supplementary Volume", Table 1.10.
	Data for suspects causing the deaths of their own children are not published separately.

Animal Experiments

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the minister responsible for animal experimentation takes to secure advice on these matters from sources independent of officials.

Caroline Flint: Under sections 9(1) and 18(2) of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, members of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate provide the Secretary of State with expert technical advice about whether and on what terms applications for licences and certificates should be granted, and on their review, amendment or variation. The Inspectorate is the only source of such advice considered necessary in dealing with most applications for project licences, personal licences and certificates of designation. The Inspectorate has no powers to grant, refuse, revoke or vary licences or certificates. That responsibility lies with the Secretary of State.
	Where issues arising from project licence applications prompt the Secretary of State to seek advice from other experts, the 1986 Act makes provision, under section 9(1), for the appointment of independent assessors. This option is seldom used, but may be exercised in a variety of circumstances. For example, advice may be sought when the issues raised require specific, expert knowledge not available within the Inspectorate. It may also be appropriate when there is debate within the scientific or welfare communities, or between the Inspectorate and an applicant, as to the scientific validity of the hypothesis or methodology; the scope for further refinement of the programme of work; the benefits likely to arise from a programme of work; or the welfare costs to the animals.
	Section 12 of the Act defines the actions to be taken by the Secretary of State when it is proposed to refuse an application for authorities under the Act, or to vary or revoke existing authorities other than with the consent of the holder of the licence or certificate. In such circumstances, the Act allows the appointment of a person of suitable legal qualification to consider any representations against such proposals and to report the outcome to the Secretary of State..
	Sections 19 and 20 of the 1986 Act establish the Animal Procedures Committee, an independent body created to advise the Secretary of State on matters concerned with the Act and the Secretary of State's powers under it. The Committee may consider and advise on matters of its own choosing, as well as those that are referred to it by the Secretary of State. In its considerations, the Committee must have regard both to the legitimate requirements of science and industry and to the protection of animals against avoidable suffering and unnecessary use in scientific procedures. The Committee regularly publishes general advice to Ministers, most recently in its reports on the use of non-human primates and on the cost benefit assessment, and also offers additional advice on the limited range of project licence applications referred to it.
	The Secretary of State is not bound by the advice received from the Inspectorate, assessors, persons appointed to consider representations, or the Animal Procedures Committee, in respect of licence applications. Such advice only informs the Secretary of State's decision.
	More generally, as the Home Office Minister responsible for the implementation of the 1986 Act, I regularly meet representatives of the scientific community and animal welfare and animal protection groups, as well as Ministerial colleagues in other Government Departments and Members of Parliament, to discuss policy relating to the use of animals in scientific procedures. I also receive correspondence and a variety of reports and written representations from these and other sources on the use of animals in scientific procedures.

Anti-drugs Strategy

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made towards the 10-year anti-drugs strategy targets of (a) halving the number of young people using Class A drugs, (b) halving the availability of Class A drugs, (c) doubling the number of drug misusers in treatment and (d) halving the levels of re-offending by drug-misusing offenders.

Caroline Flint: The Updated Drug Strategy published in December 2002 sets out revised targets aimed at reducing the harm caused by drug misuse to society communities, individuals and their families.
	The current Drug Strategy targets are as follows:
	Reduce the use of Class A drugs and the frequent use of any illicit drug among all young people under the age of 25 especially by the most vulnerable young people;
	Reduce the availability of illegal drugs by increasing the proportion of heroin and cocaine target on the UK which is taken out;
	the disruption/dismantling of those criminal groups responsible for supplying substantial quantities of Class A drugs to the UK market;
	the recovery of drug-related criminal assets;
	contribute to the reduction of opium production in Afghanistan, with poppy cultivation reduced by 70 per cent. within five years and elimination within 10 years;
	reduce drug-related crime, including as measured by the proportion of offenders testing positive at arrest;
	increase the participation of problem drug users in drug treatment programmes by 55 per cent. by 2004 and by 100 per cent. by 2008. And increase year on year the proportion of users successfully sustaining or completing treatment programmes.
	Information on progress against these targets is available as follows:
	The Home Office Annual report 2002–03 published in May 2003 provides details of progress against each of the drug strategy targets.
	In addition, the Home Office Autumn report published in December 2003 provides an update on the young people and drug related crime targets. Both of these documents are in the Library and on the Home Office website.
	Recent information on the number of drug users receiving treatment was announced on 11 December 2003 and is available in the Library and on the Department of Health's website.
	Recent information on progress to reduce the availability of drugs which cause the most harm is available on Her Majesty's Custom & Excise website. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office website provides an update on the progress of poppy eradication in Afghanistan.

Asylum Seekers

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people aged under 18 have been returned to their families in their countries of origin in each of the last three years.

Beverley Hughes: Information on the ages of those people removed from the United Kingdom is not collated centrally and would only be available by examination of individual case-files at disproportionate cost.
	Although statistics of the removal of failed asylum seekers include unaccompanied minors; they are not separately identified. However, as a matter of policy, unaccompanied children are not removed under Immigration Act powers unless we are satisfied that suitable arrangements have been made for their reception and care in the destination country.

Asylum Seekers

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much benefit was paid to asylum seekers living in the United Kingdom in 2003.

Beverley Hughes: The budget for asylum support costs for 2002–03 is £1,067 million. The actual outturn will be published in the audited resource accounts for the Home Office.

Young Offender Institutions

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times control and restraint have been used on children in (a) Stoke Heath, (b) Huntercombe and (b) Castington Young Offender Institutions in each of the last 12 months.

Paul Goggins: Information on the use of control and restraint was not recorded centrally until the beginning of last year. The data for the period 1 January 2003 to 31 November 2003, in Stoke Heath, Huntercombe and Castington Young Offender Institutions is set out in the table.
	
		
			  Stoke Heath Huntercombe Castington 
		
		
			 January 16 28 24 
			 February 11 32 7 
			 March 4 33 18 
			 April 14 26 15 
			 May 7 12 22 
			 June 9 18 27 
			 July 11 26 32 
			 August 8 31 18 
			 September 9 38 34 
			 October 7 23 17 
			 November 4 27 14

Young Offender Institutions

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children were held on the basic level of incentives and earned privileges scheme in (a) Stoke Heath, (b) Huntercombe and (b) Castington Young Offender Institutions in September.

Paul Goggins: Data on the number of children held at each level under the rewards and sanctions scheme (formerly known as incentives and earned privileges scheme), including those on basic, for September 2003, is set out in the table.
	
		
			 Establishment Basic Standard Enhanced 
		
		
			 Stoke Heath 12 133 27 
			 Huntercombe 13 210 95 
			 Castington 13 175 41

Cleveland Coroner

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many inquests were outstanding in the jurisdiction of the Cleveland Coroner in (a) July, (b) August, (c) September and (d) October 2003.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 13 January 2003
	The number of inquests in the jursidiction of the Cleveland coroner which were outstanding at the end of July, August, September and October 2003 respectively is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Inquests outstanding at date 
		
		
			 31 July 2003 273 
			 31 August 2003 268 
			 30 September 2003 261 
			 31 October 2003 245 
			 30 November 2003 238

Cleveland Coroner

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many inquests in the jurisdiction of the Cleveland Coroner were heard in (a) August, (b) September and (c) October 2003 by the (i) coroner, (ii) deputy coroner and (iii) assistant deputy coroner.

Paul Goggins: The number of inquests heard by the Cleveland coroner and his deputies in the months of August, September, October and November 2003 respectively is shown in the table.
	
		
			   Inquests heard by: 
			  Coroner Deputy coroner Assistant Deputy Coroner 
		
		
			 August 2003 20 2 3 
			 September 2003 23 1 6 
			 October 2003 22 7 6 
			 November 2003 19 11 3 
		
	
	The figures include all inquests concluded in the relevant months (i.e. a verdict was delivered, or the coroner (or deputies) declared that the inquest was not to be resumed after a Secton 16 adjournment).

Community Justice Centre

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his timetable is for the establishment of the pilot community justice centre announced on 10th September.

Paul Goggins: The Home Office, Department for Constitutional Affairs and Crown Prosecution Service are working together to develop the first pilot Community Justice Centre in the United Kingdom, which is to be located in Liverpool. Our current timetable is for the Centre to be operational by the end of 2004. This will be conditional on a number of factors, including the identification of an appropriate site to accommodate the Centre and ensure it is fit for purpose. We also want to develop the Centre with the full engagement of the local community. From early 2004 a local community needs assessment will be undertaken which will feed into the design of the Centre and into community sentence planning and community work. From April 2004 these community projects which will be run in conjunction with the Centre.

Community Justice Centre

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department where in Liverpool the pilot community justice centre will be located.

Paul Goggins: The Home Office, Department for Constitutional Affairs and Crown Prosecution Service are working together to develop the first pilot Community Justice Centre in the United Kingdom, which is to be located in Liverpool. The area of the city that the Community Justice Centre will be located is in the Liverpool north. This part of the city has experienced the problems that the Justice Centre will aim to tackle, such as anti-social behaviour and low-level criminal activity, but maintains a strong sense of community spirit and pride that the Justice Centre can build on and enhance.
	Agents, with experience of developing court buildings, are working with Liverpool City Council to locate suitable sites for the Justice Centre in this part of the city. The site will accommodate a building housing a multi-jurisdictional court room as well as criminal justice and other agencies to provide on-site services for offenders, victims and the wider community. The exact location of the Liverpool Community Justice Centre is due to be announced later this year to ensure that the Justice Centre can commence operations at the end of 2004.

Corporate Manslaughter

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to publish (a) the draft Corporate Manslaughter Bill and (b) the legislative timetable for the Bill; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 1 December 2003
	The Government are committed to reforming the law on corporate manslaughter. We intend to publish our proposals for legislation in the near future, followed by a draft Bill in the spring.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  when he will reply to the letter to him dated 23 November 2003 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to E. Elbasani;
	(2)  when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 13 November 2003 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. E. Elbasani.

David Blunkett: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 23 January 2004.

Crime Reduction Initiatives

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action is being taken to reduce and tackle persistent offending through targeting (a) prolific offenders and (b) improving security; where such schemes and projects are being trialled; and how and when such initiatives will be introduced in Middlesbrough South and Cleveland, East.

Paul Goggins: The national Persistent Offender Scheme was launched in April 2003. It is a component of Local Criminal Justice Boards' action plans to increase the number of offences brought to justice, aimed at targeting a small group of prolific offenders who are responsible for a disproportionate amount of crime. Areas have devised their own 'premium service' protocols which include elements of proactive policing, improved investigation and case management, priority court listings, and strategies for rehabilitation.
	The National Probation Service is piloting 15 Intensive Supervision and Monitoring Schemes (ISMSs) for persistent offenders in local probation/police areas. All Schemes involve joint working between probation and police. In addition, some Schemes are testing mechanisms for involving the prison service in pre-release work with persistent offenders. ISMSs target the most prolific offenders in a locality, based on police intelligence. They provide intensive surveillance and supervision of offenders, offering fast access to services and support for rehabilitation, alongside swift action and penalties for non-compliance. They involve other partner agencies such as providers of housing, education and training, alcohol and drug abuse treatment groups and employment services.
	In addition, the Government has given the courts new secure remand and tagging powers for 12- to 16-year olds who repeatedly offend on bail, funded the Youth Justice Board'sIntensive Supervision and Surveillance Programmes for the most prolific young offenders and renewed its commitment to maintain the time from arrest to sentence for persistent young offenders at or below 71 days.
	The following local schemes cover the Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency:
	Intensive Supervision and Monitoring Scheme for adult offenders (Police/Probation).
	Intensive Supervision and Surveillance Programmes for young offenders (Youth Offending Teams).
	Both schemes operate throughout Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland.
	Criminal Justice Intervention Programme (CJIP)—there is an existing scheme operating in Middlesbrough, and Redcar and Cleveland will benefit from the CJIP funding being made available to all parts of the country.

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to formulate a definition of a crime of violence in relation to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.

Paul Goggins: None. The Scheme has functioned effectively since its inception in 1964 without the need to define what is meant by such terms as 'criminal injury' or 'crime of violence'. Any detailed definition runs the risk of being too prescriptive and excluding borderline cases where discretion might reasonably be exercised. There would also be the risk of failing to include sufficient scope to accommodate changes in the nature of crime, such as deliberately infecting someone with Aids, or stalking. We consider that in its present form the Scheme strikes an appropriate balance between breath of scope and necessary clarification.

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Government is taking to ensure the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme does not deem physical violence to be an essential component of a sexual offence.

Paul Goggins: The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme already recognises that physical violence is not an essential component of sexual offences by making provision (at paragraph 9 of the 2001 Scheme) for compensation to be paid where such offences have caused mental injury alone.

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme deals with the role of grooming as a tactic of abusers.

Paul Goggins: In considering applications for compensation submitted in respect of alleged abuse of children, claims officers of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority take account of any available evidence of grooming and/or abuse of power when they decide whether an applicant was able to give and actually gave informed consent to what took place.

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research has been conducted on the suitability of trusts as a means for victims to retain their eligibility for benefits after a compensation pay-out; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: The Home Office has conducted no such research, nor is any planned.

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will accept the recommendations of Victim Support in their report Insult to Injury.

Paul Goggins: We have issued a consultation paper inviting views on ways in which the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme might be changed to release resources for wider victims' programmes. Victim Support has been consulted about the developing proposals. We will consider their report's recommendations, and any further comments they wish to offer.

Criminal Justice Interventions Programme

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the role of the Criminal Justice Interventions Programme in addressing drug-misusing offenders.

Caroline Flint: The Criminal Justice Interventions Programme (CJIP) is a programme of measures designed to help drug misusing offenders reduce their offending behaviour by accessing drug treatment. The programme includes enhanced arrest referral, drug testing on charge and a range of initiatives to improve treatment needs of offenders while serving their sentence. CJIP also encourages the positive reintegration into society of drug misusers after they have left the judicial system.
	CJIP rolled out on April 2003 and will expand its coverage from April 2004.

Criminal Justice System

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research is planned on disabled children and young people's (a) access to and (b) experience of the criminal justice system.

Paul Goggins: There is no specific research planned on disabled children's and young people's access to the criminal justice system. However work is under way with the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) to ensure that the criminal justice system is adequately covered in the Citizenship section of the National Curriculum. As part of this we will ensure that disabled children have the same opportunities to learn about and experience the criminal justice system as other children.

Criminal Justice System

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to improve the efficiency of the criminal justice system.

Paul Goggins: The Home Office, Department for Constitutional Affairs and the Crown Prosecution Service share a Criminal Justice System tri-lateral Public Service Agreement target to increase value for money from the Criminal Justice System by 3 per cent. a year. The technical note for how this target will be achieved was published and announced in the House in July 2003.

Criminal Offences

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list, broken down by Act, the criminal offences created in legislation sponsored by his Department in session 2002–03.

Paul Goggins: The following offences have been created, modified or re-enacted by the Sexual Offences Act 2003:
	section 1: Rape
	section 2: Assault by penetration
	section 3: Sexual assault
	section 4: Causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent
	section 5: Rape of a child under 13
	section 6: Assault of a child under 13 by penetration
	section 7: Sexual assault of a child under 13
	section 8: Causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity
	section 9: Sexual activity with a child
	section 10: Causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity
	section 11: Engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child
	section 12: Causing a child to watch a sexual act
	section 13: Child sex offences committed by children or young persons
	section 14: Arranging or facilitation commission of a child sex offence
	section 15: Meeting a child following sexual grooming etc
	section 16: Abuse of position of trust: sexual activity with a child
	section 17: Abuse of position of trust: causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity
	section 18: Abuse of position of trust: sexual activity in the presence of a child
	section 19: Abuse of position of trust: causing a child to watch a sexual act
	section 25: Sexual activity with a child family member
	section 26: Inciting a child family member to engage in sexual activity
	section 30: Sexual activity with a person with a mental disorder impeding choice
	section 31: Causing or inciting a person with a mental disorder impeding choice to engage in sexual activity
	section 32: Engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a person with a mental disorder impeding choice
	section 33: Causing a person, with a mental disorder impeding choice, to watch a sexual act
	section 34: Inducement, threat or deception to procure sexual activity with a person with a mental disorder
	section 35: Causing a person with a mental disorder to engage in or agree to engage in sexual activity by inducement, threat or deception
	section 36: Engaging in sexual activity in the presence, procured by inducement, threat or deception, of a person with a mental disorder
	section 37: Causing a person with a mental disorder to watch a sexual act by inducement, threat or deception
	section 38: Care workers: sexual activity with a person with a mental disorder
	section 39: Care workers: causing or inciting sexual activity
	section 40: Care workers: sexual activity in the presence of a person with a mental disorder
	section 41: Care workers: causing a person with a mental disorder to watch a sexual act
	section 45: Indecent photographs of persons aged 16 or 17
	section 46: Criminal proceedings, investigations, etc
	section 47: Paying for sexual services of a child
	section 48: Causing or inciting child prostitution or pornography
	section 49: Controlling a child prostitute or a child involved in pornography
	section 50: Arranging or facilitating child prostitution or pornography
	section 52: Causing or inciting prostitution for gain
	section 53: Controlling prostitution for gain
	section 55: Penalties for keeping a brothel used for prostitution
	section 56: Extension of gender-specific prostitution offences
	section 57: Trafficking into the UK for sexual exploitation
	section 58: Trafficking within the UK for sexual exploitation
	section 59: Trafficking out of the UK for sexual exploitation
	section 61: Administering a substance with intent
	section 62: Committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence
	section 63: Trespass with intent to commit a sexual offence
	section 64: Sex with an adult relative: penetration
	section 65: Sex with an adult relative: consenting to penetration
	section 66: Exposure
	section 67: Voyeurism
	section 69: Intercourse with an animal
	section 70: Sexual penetration of a corpse
	section 71: Sexual activity in a public lavatory
	section 72: Offences outside the United Kingdom—extension of jurisdiction
	section 91: Offences relating to notification (breach of the notification requirements)
	section 113: Breach of sexual offences prevention order or interim sexual offences prevention order
	section 122: Breach of foreign travel order
	section 128: Breach of risk of sexual harm order or interim risk of sexual harm order.
	Under section 81 of the Crime (International Co-operation) Act 2003 it is now an offence to obstruct a person carrying out an inspection of the Schengen Information System, the Europol Information System or the Customs Information System. Section 88 of the Act extends the scope of section 5 of the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 so it will also apply to the forgery of bankers drafts, promissory notes and debit cards.
	The Anti Social Behaviour Act 2003 creates a number of new offences. Under section 4 of the Act (closure of premises where drugs are used unlawfully) a person commits an offence if he remains on or enters premises in contravention of a closure notice. A person also commits an offence if:
	(a) He obstructs a constable or authorised person acting under section 1(6) (service of a closure notice) or section 3(2) (entering the premises or doing anything reasonably necessary to secure the premises against entry).
	(b) He remains on premises in respect of which a closure order has been made.
	(c) He enters the premises.
	Under section 32 (Dispersal of groups) a person who knowingly contravenes a direction given to him under section 30(4) (to disperse, to leave the relevant locality or prohibiting a return to the relevant locality) commits an offence.
	Under section 37 it is an offence to carry an air weapon (whether loaded or not) or an imitation firearm in a public place without lawful authority or reasonable excuse.
	Under section 38 it is an offence for a person under the age of 17 to have with him an air weapon or ammunition for an air weapon.
	Under section 38 it is an offence for a 14 to 16-year-old to fire an air weapon beyond the boundary of private land under the circumstances where he has the permission of the occupier to shoot unsupervised.
	Under section 39 it is an offence for a person to possess, purchase or acquire, or manufacture, sell or transfer any air rifle, air gun or air pistol which uses, or is designed or adapted for use with, a self-contained gas cartridge system. If at the time that this provision comes into force, a person has such an air rifle, air gun or air pistol in his possession, he will not be prevented from continued possession, but it will be an offence for him to continue possession without a licence.
	Under section 40 a person commits an offence if without reasonable excuse he permits premises to be open in contravention of a closure order issued because a public nuisance is being caused by noise coming from the premises.
	Under section 54 a person commits an offence if he sells an aerosol paint container to a person under the age of 16.
	Under section 58 a person commits an offence if he knows that a direction under section 63(2) of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 has been given which applies to him and he makes preparations for or attends a rave within 24 hours of the direction being given.
	Under section 61 a person commits an offence if he knows that a direction under section 62A of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 has been given which applies to him and he fails to leave the land as soon as reasonably practicable, or if, within three months of the direction being given, he enters any land in the area of the relevant local authority as a trespasser with the intention of residing there.
	Under section 75 a person commits an offence if he fails to comply with a remedial notice to take action in relation to a high hedge.
	Under section 77 a person commits an offence if he intentionally obstructs a person exercising the powers to enter the neighbouring land in order to carry out their functions under the Act.
	As a result of legislation introduced by private members, the following offences were enacted in the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003:
	section 1: Offence of female genital mutilation
	section 2: Offence of assisting a girl to mutilate her own genitalia
	section 3: Offence of assisting a non-UK person to mutilate overseas a girl's genitalia
	section 4: Extension of sections 1–3 to extra-territorial acts.
	Sections 1 and 2 of the 2003 Act re-enact existing offences under the Prohibition of Female Circumcision Act 1985. Sections 3 and 4 introduce new offences.

Crown Prosecution Service

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to allow the Crown Prosecution Service to have early access to police files to assist case preparation.

Paul Goggins: Following successful pilots of the Auld recommendation to increase the role of crown prosecutors in charging decisions, measures to put this on a statutory footing have been enacted in the Criminal Justice Act 2003. The relevant provisions will be brought into effect in April 2004, and the new arrangements will then be implemented on an area-by-area basis.
	In preparation for that implementation, Crown Prosecution Service areas and their police partners are establishing shadow charging arrangements in each area. This will provide an infrastructure of duty prosecutors working in police operational units to provide on-the-spot advice to investigators, to be available for early consultation in investigations, and to make charging decisions in a wide range of cases.
	Early guidance will focus on the lines of enquiry to be pursued in individual cases, the likely charges to be preferred and the evidential requirements to support these. Guidance will also be given on the case preparation requirements in each individual case.
	Charging decisions will be made by crown prosecutors following a review of all the available evidence in each case. Where the evidence presented by an officer is insufficient for the charging decision to be made at that time, further guidance will be given on continuing case preparation and evidential requirements.

Curfew Orders

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average length was of (a) an electronically monitored curfew order and (b) a home detention curfew in financial year 2002–03.

Paul Goggins: In the financial year 2002–03 the average length of an electronically monitored curfew order was 95 days, and the average length of a home detention curfew was 52 days.

Departmental Leaflets

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria his Department uses when deciding whether a leaflet which it publishes is to be made available only on its website.

Fiona Mactaggart: The decision process to make information available only on the Home Office website is as follows:
	The target audience for every publication is ascertained at the initial planning stage of each project.
	If, after investigation, it is the case that the most cost-effective and efficient method of disseminating the information is by way of the website then that method would be employed. The approved information will also be sent for Legal Deposit in compliance with the Legal Deposit Act 2003 extension covering non-printed materials.
	Informability aspects are also considered at this initial stage, therefore the document may appear in additional formats such as the Welsh or ethnic minority languages or in formats for people with disabilities.

Departmental Press Releases

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many press releases were issued by his Department in 2003.

Fiona Mactaggart: holding answer 19 January 2004
	The number of press releases issued by the Home Office in 2003 was as follows:
	
		
			  Number of press releases 
		
		
			 Home Office 374 
			 Prison Service 43 
			 Criminal Justice Service 13 
			 Prisons Inspectorate 68 
			 Probation Inspectorate 11 
			 Police Inspectorate 3 
			 Advisory Council on Misuse of Drugs 1 
			 Animal Procedures Committee 2 
			 Assets Recovery Agency 1 
			 Compact Working Group 1 
			 UK Passport Service 3 
			 Total 520

Detention and Training Orders

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the early release scheme for detention and training orders issued since 2001.

Paul Goggins: The Youth Justice Board (YJB) commissioned an internal study from PA Consulting on the factors inhibiting or assisting the take up of early release.
	PA's report, in September 2003, found that establishments generally saw early release as a useful incentive to influence the behaviour of trainees serving terms of eight months or more. Where early release was not granted, the main reasons were decisions by review meetings that trainees were unsuitable; lack of appropriate accommodation for them to go to; and young people's refusal of early release. PA recommended monitoring the reasons for decisions not to agree early release; investigating ways of improving the availability of suitable accommodation; and developing a system to record centrally the outcomes of early release decisions. The YJB are pursuing these recommendations.

Discharged Cases

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many defendants in (a) 2003 and (b) each of the last four years have been discharged due to delays in gathering evidence, pressure of work and errors on the part of the (i) police and (ii) Crown Prosecution Service; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: The Home Office does not keep any data on the reasons for discharges and the Crown Prosecution Service holds no central records of reasons for the outcome of proceedings. The Crown Prosecution keeps data on the number of unsuccessful outcomes (finalisations other than a conviction) for magistrates and crown courts, and the stage at which the outcome was unsuccessful.
	The proportion of total magistrates court outcomes that were unsuccessful as a result of being-discontinued or bound over; write off; discharged committals; dismissal no case; or dismissals after trial was 22.0 per cent. for 2003 (to September). The corresponding figure was 23.4 per cent. in 2002, 23.5 per cent. in 2001, 23.5 per cent. in 2000, and 23.1 per cent. in 1999.
	The implementation of the compass case management system will enable a full record of the reason for all unsuccessful outcomes in magistrates courts and in the crown court to be provided.

Drug or Alcohol Treatment

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average time was between the referral by courts of individuals with criminal convictions for drug or alcohol treatment and the commencement of their treatment programmes in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: Information relating to the national average waiting time to access drug or alcohol treatment by offenders in the community in each of the last five years is not available. However, since October 2000 drug treatment can only be imposed by the courts as a provision of a drug treatment and testing order (DTTO). The DTTO National Standard requires that appointments are arranged to take place with the Probation Service within one working day and with the treatment provider within two working days of the order being made and this is being achieved in over 75 per cent. of cases. From 2004–05 areas have been set a target to increase this performance to 90 per cent.

Forensic Medical Examiner Training

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the toxicology awareness module for forensic medical examiner training will be in use; and when details of it will be available.

Paul Goggins: Training on collecting evidence for toxicology is already in place for Forensic Medical Examiners (FMEs). It is incorporated in the Association of Forensic Physicians (AFP) introductory and development training courses. More specialised teaching also occurs at regional training courses and at conferences. The courses include training on toxicology issues relating to complainants of sexual assault and drug facilitated sexual assault.

Gun Crime

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what meetings his Department has had with community organisations working to combat gun crime.

Caroline Flint: We have held three round-table meetings on gun crime, the most recent on 25 November 2003. These have included representatives from community groups and organisations. The meetings have provided opportunities to take stock of existing action to tackle gun crime and gun culture and have helped to inform our forward approach.
	In addition, the Home Office hosted a major gun crime/community involvement event in Birmingham on 19 and 20 January this year. The event brought together individuals from communities, local groups, voluntary organisations, young people, the police and policy makers to explore the nature of gun crime and gun culture and to help identify what more can be done to tackle these issues.

Home Detention Curfew

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which offences are assessed as being unsuitable for release on home detention curfew.

Paul Goggins: Prisoners currently serving sentences for the following offences are statutorily excluded from release under the Home Detention Curfew scheme:
	Violent and sex offenders serving an extended sentence
	Prisoners serving a sentence for an offence under section 1 of the Prisoners (Return to Custody) Act 1995 (for failure to return to custody following a period of temporary release)
	Prisoners serving a sentence imposed under paragraph 3(1)(d) or 4(1)(d) of Schedule 2 to the Criminal Justice Act 1991 in a case where the prisoner had failed to comply with a requirement of a curfew order
	Fine defaulters and contemnors, whether civil or criminal.
	Prisoners who are liable to the registration requirements of the Sex Offenders Act 1997 are also excluded from the scheme.
	In addition, with effect from 14 July 2003, prisoners serving sentences for the following categories of offences are presumed unsuitable for release under the Home Detention Curfew scheme unless there are exceptional reasons to grant release:
	Homicide
	Causing explosions, placing explosives, possessing explosives
	Possession of offensive weapons
	Possession of firearms with intent
	Cruelty to children
	Racially aggravated offences
	The presumption against suitability also applies to prisoners with any history of sexual offending.

Home Detention Curfew

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what evaluation he has made of the effectiveness of the Home Detention Curfew Scheme.

Paul Goggins: The operation of the Home Detention Curfew (HDC) scheme is monitored on a weekly basis. Between January 1999, when the scheme was introduced, and 9 January 2004, over 86,000 prisoners have been released under the Home Detention Curfew scheme. At any one time about 3,600 low risk prisoners, who would otherwise be filling prison places, are serving the last part of the custodial portion of their sentence on HDC. Since the scheme began 90 per cent. of those granted HDC have completed their curfew period without any problems at all and 2 per cent. are reported as having been convicted, cautioned or are awaiting prosecution for an offence committed while subject to HDC.
	In addition, the Home Office published an evaluation of the operation of the first 16 months of the scheme in June 2001 (Home Office Research Study 222: "Electronic Monitoring of released prisoners: an evaluation of the Home Detention Curfew scheme").
	I am satisfied that the scheme continues successfully to provide suitable prisoners with a smoother and more effective re-integration back into the community by enabling them to be released from prison early while still subject to restrictions placed on their liberty.

Home Detention Curfew

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the confidence of the public in the Home Detention Curfew Scheme.

Paul Goggins: The Home Office has not carried out a survey specifically addressing public attitudes to the Home Detention Curfew (HDC) scheme but the scheme has been running successfully for over four years and public confidence in the Prison Service over this period has remained good. Ministers regularly receive correspondence about the scheme. Most of this concerns individual cases; only a small proportion expresses any concerns about the principles that underpin HDC.

Human Trafficking

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what support his Department offers to (a) women and (b) children who have been victims of human trafficking; and what funding has been allocated to this work.

Paul Goggins: The White Paper "Secure Borders, Safe Haven"—published in February 2002—sets out our general proposals for assisting the victims of trafficking.On March 10, we launched a pilot scheme offering protection and support to adult female victims of trafficking for purpose of sexual exploitation. The victims who are willing to come forward to the authorities, and help law enforcement against organised criminals, are offered protection—through safe accommodation, and a range of support services such as counselling and health checks, managed by a voluntary sector organisation.
	We will also consider, in the light of individual circumstances, whether it would be appropriate to allow such victims who have co-operated to remain here. Where they are to return home, we will assist them to do so, providing them with initial counselling, ensuring that they have suitable accommodation to return to, and providing help to enable them to re-integrate into their own community and find employment.
	Under the provisions of the Children Act 1989, minors are the responsibility of local authority social services departments. It is not possible for minors to be admitted to the pilot scheme.
	The funding allocation over three years (2002–05) is £1.3 million.

Identity Cards

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the potential costs and benefits of identity cards in reducing automated fraud within Government departments; if he will make a statement on current levels of effectiveness in dealing with automated fraud within Government departments; and how his Department plans to ensure personal privacy once identity cards are introduced.

Beverley Hughes: The Cabinet Office Study on Identity Fraud (published in 2002) estimated the cost of identity fraud in a number of Government departments. According to the Study the main departments affected by identity fraud are Department of Health, Customs and Excise, Department for Work and Pensions and the Home Office—the amount lost in 2000–01 was estimated to be £681 million.
	The incorporation of biometric information into identity documents, which was announced by my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary in his statement on a national identity cards scheme, will provide a unique link between the identity document and the person to whom it is issued. This will allow Government departments who provide a public service to identify uniquely whom they are dealing with and therefore help to prevent losses caused by identity fraud.
	Identity cards will also allow Government departments to prevent unauthorised access to services, an example would be claims to free non-emergency NHS treatment by people whose immigration status does not entitle them to this treatment.
	The Home Office has recently established a cross public-private sector work programme to tackle identity theft and identity fraud. This programme is specifically examining:
	policy development (eg identify opportunities for combating identity fraud through data sharing or creating new criminal offences)
	developing and sharing good practice (eg improving the procedures for checking and issuing official documents such as passports and driving licences)
	scoping studies and potential pilots to identify new systems to counter identity fraud
	In addition to this work, the Passport Service is piloting a system to conduct more background checks on passport applications. DVLA is working with the Passport Service and other Government Departments to raise the quality of its identity checks using good practice already identified elsewhere.
	We have also looked at legislative changes to make identity theft or fraud easier to prosecute or to ensure that the penalties associated with fraudulent use of documents reflect their use in creating false, or stealing genuine, identities. The Criminal Justice Act 2003 changed the law to align the penalty associated with fraudulently obtaining a driving licence with that for fraudulently obtaining a passport and to make these offences arrestable. This will ensure consistency of approach during prosecution so that fraudulently obtaining either document will incur a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment, serving as a more effective deterrent and ensuring that neither document is considered a weak link in establishing a false identity.
	We have also announced our intention to create a new offence relating to being in possession or control of false identity documents, without reasonable cause. This offence will provide the police with the means to disrupt the activities of organised criminals and terrorists at an earlier stage of their activities.
	The Home Office and its Agencies take every reasonable action to identify fraudsters and pass on their details to the police for appropriate action.
	We are satisfied that an identity cards scheme that complies with the Data Protection and Human Rights Act can be developed and implemented, just like other similar schemes operating currently in European countries.
	"Identity Cards—The Next Steps" (Cm 6020), published in November 2003, by my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary explained that the National Identity Register would only contain basic identity information such as name, address, date of birth, gender, immigration status and a confirmed biometric—and that this will be set out in statute. Organisations using the National Register to verify identity will not be able to get other personal information, for instance health or tax records, via the Register.
	The police and other organisations will not have routine access to data stored on the National Register. However, there are strong arguments for giving them access to help fight serious crime and terrorism. Such access will be set out in statute and there will be independent oversight of the arrangements as there is at the present time. There will be no new power for the police to stop someone and demand to see their card.

Identity Cards

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the compulsory phase for the holding of an identity card will commence.

Beverley Hughes: In his announcement on 11 November 2003, my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary stated that the Government have decided to build a base for a compulsory identity cards scheme. We intend to proceed by incremental stages. When the conditions are right, the first stage phased roll-out will be followed by a move to a compulsory card scheme in which it would be compulsory to have a card, though not to carry it.
	A final decision on a move to compulsion will require a full debate and a vote in both Houses of Parliament.

Identity Cards

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions his Department has had with representatives from other countries on the (a) benefits and (b) best practice in the introduction of identity cards; and what the outcome of those meetings was.

Beverley Hughes: Identity card schemes have existed in all EU countries for many years, with the exception of Denmark and Ireland.
	Home Office officials have had detailed discussions with colleagues involved in the operation of identity card schemes in Italy, Sweden and the Netherlands and lessons learned have informed the development of policy where appropriate.
	In addition, comprehensive information has been supplied by each of the EU member states on the operation of their card schemes, including its introduction and the benefits associated with the card scheme. The results of this work comprise Annex 3 of "Entitlement Cards and Identity Fraud: A Consultation" (CM 5557) published in July 2002, and have since been updated.
	Home Office officials will continue to work closely with colleagues in EU member states.

Identity Cards

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the cost per card of introducing identity cards; and what percentage of this each card-holding citizen will be expected to pay.

Beverley Hughes: In his announcement on 11 November 2003, my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary stated that the Government have decided to begin the process of introducing a national identity cards scheme.
	Set up costs for the first three years have been estimated at £186 million. Costs thereafter will be covered by charges. It would not be appropriate to publish more detailed information than that set out in the Identity Cards—The Next Steps publication while we prepare options for procurement and implementation of the identity cards scheme. However, we are continuing to work with potential suppliers and partners to ensure estimates are accurate, realistic and deliverable.

Identity Cards

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether (a) private and (b) public companies will collect the biometric information necessar for the proposed identity card scheme.

Beverley Hughes: In his announcement on 11 November 2003, my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary stated that the Government have decided to begin the process of introducing a national identity cards scheme.
	The first stage of the process will include close work across Government to develop effective technology, particularly on biometrics, and to introduce systems to ensure that biometric data can be collected, stored and used effectively. This includes a biometric pilot which is being run by the United Kingdom Passport Service to test the recording of face, iris and fingerprint biometric information.
	It is too soon to make any decisions on the types of organisation which may collect biometric information.

Identity Cards

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the implications of the introduction of identity cards for the common travel area between the UK and Ireland;
	(2)  when he next plans to meet Irish government officials to discuss the introduction of identity cards in the UK;
	(3)  what negotiations he has had with the Irish Government concerning the introduction of identity cards in the United Kingdom.

Beverley Hughes: There have been discussions with the Irish Government at both Ministerial and official level about those aspects of the introduction of identity cards which are of particular relevance of them, including the Common Travel Area. The Common Travel Area cover the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man as well as Ireland, and the UK and its operation affects everyone travelling within it, whatever their nationality. Routine immigration checks are not carried out on people travelling within the area. The Government's proposals for identity cards do not compromise the principle of the Common Travel Area. Discussions will continue with the Irish Government on those issues.

Identity Theft

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to counter identity theft.

Beverley Hughes: Following the conclusion of the consultation on Entitlement Cards and Identity Fraud in July 2003, the Home Office is taking work forward on the introduction of identity cards, including examining the role identity cards could have in countering identity theft and fraud.
	In addition to this work, the Passport Service is piloting a system to conduct more background checks on passport applications. DVLA is working with the Passport Service and other Government Departments to raise the quality of its identity checks using good practice already identified elsewhere.
	We have also looked at legislative changes to make identity theft or fraud easier to prosecute or to ensure that the penalties associated with fraudulent use of documents take account of their use in creating false, or stealing genuine, identities. The Criminal Justice Act 2003 changed the law to align the penalty associated with fraudulently obtaining a driving licence with that for fraudulently obtaining a passport and to make these offences arrestable. This will ensure consistency of approach during prosecution so that fraudulently obtaining either document will incur a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment, serving as a more effective deterrent and ensuring that neither document is considered a weak link.
	We also announced in 2003 our intention to create a new offence relating to being in possession or control of false identity documents, without reasonable cause. This offence will provide the police with the means to disrupt the activities of organised criminals and terrorists at an earlier stage of their activities.
	The Home Office has recently established a cross public-private sector work programme to tackle identity theft and identity fraud. This programme is specifically examining:
	policy development (e.g. identify opportunities for combating ID fraud through data sharing or creating new criminal offences);
	developing and sharing good practice (e.g. improving the procedures for checking and issuing official documents such as passports and driving licences); and
	scoping studies and potential pilots to identify new systems to counter ID fraud.

Identity Theft

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance he has issued to the public on the protection of their personal details.

Beverley Hughes: It is not currently a criminal offence for a person simply to use another identity. However, false identities are often used to facilitate other offences such as deception and money laundering. Crimes such as theft and robberies are carried out sometimes to obtain personal documents, which are subsequently used to create false identities.
	The general guidance we have issued on being safe, secure and how to avoid being a victim of crime, will help prevent personal documents from being stolen and misused. This includes caution on sending financial details in emails and ordering goods over the internet and being mindful of carrying valuables on the person.
	Police forces offer advice to the public on how to avoid being a victim of identity theft as part of their crime prevention activity.
	Passports and driving licences are the two main official documents that are used currently to help prove identity. The UK Passport Service has produced guidance on keeping passports safe and what to do if they are lost or stolen. It highlights that
	"If your passport is lost or stolen you should be aware that, in addition to the inconvenience of acquiring a replacement, the document (passport) and your identity are open to misuse".
	The booklet also explains how to keep your passport secure when abroad.
	DVLA is considering the advice that it currently provides and is looking into what guidance it can offer to drivers on looking after their licences, including the fact that their identity could be open to misuse if their licence is lost or stolen.
	We have encouraged financial organisations and utilities to provide regular guidance to their customers on how to safely dispose of statements and bills, which are often used to help prove identity. We hope that private sector organisations will play their part in raising public awareness on how to handle and safely dispose of these and other types of personal documents.

International Criminal Conduct

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what powers the Secretary of State has to intervene in matters of international criminal conduct, in relation to imprisonment in the UK of those found guilty of crimes.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 13 January 1003
	The investigation and prosecution of those suspected of criminal conduct are matters for the competent police and judicial authorities and the Secretary of State cannot intervene in the decisions taken. As a general rule, the courts here can only deal with crimes committed in this country. There are some exceptions to the general territorial rule including murder, terrorism, sexual offences against a child and torture. Decisions on whether to seek a person's extradition for the purposes of prosecution are also a matter for the competent authorities.
	Under the terms of the Repatriation of Prisoners Act 1984, and international agreements to which the United Kingdom is a party, the Secretary of State can request the repatriation to the United Kingdom of British nationals imprisoned overseas and authorise the repatriation of foreign nationals imprisoned here. Under the International Criminal Court Act 2001, the United Kingdom can also reach agreement with the Court so that persons convicted by the Court can serve their prison sentences in this country.

Juvenile Prisoners

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents of self-injury have been recorded at each of the prisons in the juvenile estate since 1 December 2001.

Paul Goggins: The information requested is provided in the table. As the establishments hold both juveniles (aged 15–17 years) and young offenders (YOs, aged 18–20 years), a breakdown of self-harm incidents by age range is also provided.
	
		
			  Establishment 
			  Ashfield Hollesley Bay Huntercombe Werrington Wetherby Total 
		
		
			 Juveniles   
			 December 2001 13 0 0 1 1 15 
			 2002 166 4 4 1 9 184 
			 2003(56) 159 2 38 2 14 215 
			 Total juveniles 338 6 42 4 24 414 
			 YOs   
			 December 2001 4 0 0 0 0 4 
			 2002 48 0 2 0 0 50 
			 2003(56) 101 0 7 0 0 108 
			 Total YOs 153 0 9 0 0 162 
			 Total incidents 491 6 51 4 24 576 
		
	
	(56) Up to 30 November 2003.
	Note:
	The figures provided are number of incidents, not number of individuals. Some individuals will repeatedly self-harm. In December 2002, a new form for reporting self-injury (the F213SH) was introduced across the prisons estate, which seeks to address the problem of under-reporting of self-injury.
	A number of intervention strategies have been introduced into prisons, young offender and juvenile establishments for people who self-harm. These include counselling, support groups, and specialised psychological interventions.

Intercept Evidence

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to review the admissibility of intercept evidence in criminal trials.

Paul Goggins: A review is currently under way.

Magistrates Courts

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Government intends to introduce the extension of magistrates courts' sentencing powers under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (a) before and (b) after the planned implementation of the custody plus scheme.

Paul Goggins: No final decisions have been made about the timing of implementation of these two provisions.

Merseyside Crime Initiative Unit

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many swift justice cases there have been due to the Street Crime Initiative Unit in Merseyside.

Paul Goggins: Under the Street Crime Initiative, courts are ensuring that street crime cases move through the criminal justice system without unnecessary delay and that trials are given hearing dates as early as practicable.
	Merseyside aim to provide a good quality of prosecution, using the Premium Service approach. The Crown Prosecution Service are co-located and work closely with the police from an early stage of investigation to progress cases through the courts. In one case last year a defendant was charged and convicted in the Liverpool Crown court in 30 hours.

Merseyside Crime Initiative Unit

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many and what percentage of witnesses on Merseyside applied for special measures in giving evidence in the last year for which figures are available; and how many and what percentage had their request granted;
	(2)  what assessment has been made of witnesses' reactions to the special measures available in Merseyside to allow them to give their best evidence in court;
	(3)  what research has been undertaken on witnesses' views of their treatment by Merseyside Crown Prosecution Service.

Paul Goggins: In 2003 the Crown court at Liverpool received 497 applications for Special Measures. Information on the number of applications received by magistrates courts and youth courts is not held centrally. The number and percentage of successful requests in the Crown court is also not held centrally. These figures could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
	Surveys of witnesses' views towards special measures were conducted before and after the first phase of implementation of the special measures. The findings of the pre-implementation survey were published in 2001 (Home Office Research Findings 147, http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/r147.pdf). The post-implementation survey was conducted in 2003 and is currently being written-up.
	The Witness Satisfaction Surveys of 2000 and 2002 measured general witness satisfaction with various agencies, including the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/hors230.pdf, http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/r133.pdf, http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs2/f189.pdf
	Witnesses interviewed for these surveys were drawn from courts throughout England and Wales and analysis was done on that basis. Apart from the disproportionate cost of gathering the information requested, the number of interviews carried out in Merseyside would probably be too small to allow statistically meaningful analysis.

Miscarriages of Justice

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which unit in his Department dealt with reviewing alleged miscarriages of justice before the establishment of the Criminal Cases Review Commission; how many applications the unit received in each of the last five years for which figures are available; how many cases were referred to the appropriate court of appeal; and how many sentences were (a) reduced and (b) quashed as a result of referral in each of the last 10 years for which the unit operated.

Paul Goggins: C3 was the unit responsible for reviewing alleged miscarriages of justice before the establishment of the Criminal Cases Review Commission in 1997.
	Figures for the number of applications to C3 are not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, it is recorded that
	"the figure for 1992 was 790 of which 634 involved a custodial sentence".
	Figures relating to referrals of convictions are only readily available from 1989 onwards and referrals of sentences from 1990. The convictions referred to the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal by the Home Secretary from 1990 to the establishment of the Criminal Cases Review Commission and their outcomes are as follows:
	
		
			  Convictions referred Convictions upheld Convictions quashed 
		
		
			 1989 6 0 6 
			 1990 20 0 20 
			 1991 12 0 12 
			 1992 13 4 9 
			 1993 10 4 6 
			 1994 12 7 5 
			 1995 17 7 (57)10 
			 1996 12 2 10 
			 1997(58) 3 1 2 
		
	
	(57) Includes one case where only two of several counts were overturned.
	(58) January to March only.
	In addition the Home Secretary referred sentences back to the Court of Appeal as follows:
	
		
			  Sentences referred 
		
		
			 1990 3 
			 1991 8 
			 1992 1 
			 1993 0 
			 1994 3 
			 1995 2 
			 1996 7 
			 1997(59) 0 
		
	
	(59) January to March only.
	However, the information available on their outcomes is uncertain and could be verified only at disproportionate cost.

Multi-agency Public Protection

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders are covered by the multi-agency public protection arrangements; what proportion of these are (a) registered sex offenders, (b) other sexual offenders or (c) violent offenders; and how many are considered to pose a high risk to the public.

Paul Goggins: The total number of offenders falling within the remit of the multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA) in the reporting period 2002–03 was 52,809. 41 per cent. were registered sex offenders; 56 per cent. were violent offenders and other sexual offenders; and 3 per cent. were other offenders who fall into neither of the first two categories but who pose a risk of serious harm. In 2002–03, 2,843 MAPPA offenders were referred to a multi-agency public protection panel because they posed the highest risk of harm and/or because the management of those risks was particularly difficult.

Multi-agency Public Protection

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders have been referred to a multi-agency public protection panel in the last 12 months.

Paul Goggins: In the reporting year 2002–03, 2,843 offenders subject to the multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA) were referred to a multi-agency public protection panel.

Multi-agency Public Protection

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders subject to the multi-agency public protection arrangements are under covert surveillance; and what estimate he has made of the cost per day of such surveillance.

Paul Goggins: Covert surveillance includes a range of monitoring activities which can vary greatly in scale and duration. No record of the number of surveillance operations on Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) offenders is kept; and because of the broad range of this type of activity no generalised estimate of cost has been made.

Multi-agency Public Protection

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the performance of multi-agency public protection panels.

Paul Goggins: Two pieces of research into the multi-agency public protection arrangements (the MAPPA) are being conducted and will report next autumn. One will evaluate the effectiveness of the statutory framework of the MAPPA; the other will analyse the offenders referred to the multi-agency public protection panels and will identify good practice.
	In addition, the publication of an annual report on the MAPPA by each area of England and Wales provides a regular review of this important area of work. My written statement to the House on 15 September 2003 announcing the publication of these reports, indicated that the MAPPA have made a significant contribution to improving public protection.
	There is a further requirement where the court is considering making a Detention and Training Order on an offender below the age of 15: the court must additionally be satisfied that the young person is a persistent offender. (The Detention and Training Order is the standard order for offenders under 18 who are sentenced to custody).

National Offenders Management Service

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff employed by the 42 probation areas in England and Wales will be transferred to the National Offenders Management Service Regional Structure; and what their duties will be.

Paul Goggins: In the short term probation staff will continue to be employed by their probation board. It is too early to say how many staff will be needed in the new structure.
	Individual probation areas will continue to function as they are for the moment. However, as the new organisation develops, offender managers from the National Offender Management Service will assume end to end responsibility for offenders and will contract with providers of services from the public, private and voluntary sector. We have not as yet finalised our view as to the future of the 42 boards within this framework. My right hon. Friend, the Home Secretary has, therefore, specifically sought the views of key stakeholders.

National Offenders Management Service

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps will be taken to ensure that there will not be an increase in the administrative demands on front-line staff following the creation of the National Offenders Management Service; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 19 January 2004
	The Government are committed to the reduction of unnecessary bureaucracy, particularly in regard to demands on front-line staff. The National Offender Management Service implementation team will seek to reduce the administrative demands on front-line staff wherever possible.

National Offenders Management Service

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether it is his intention that local probation areas will become an integral arm of the National Offenders Management Service and retain operational freedom; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 19 January 2004
	Individual probation areas will continue to function as they are for the moment. As the new organisation develops, offender managers from the National Offender Management Service will assume end-to-end responsibility for offenders and will contract with providers of services from the public, private and voluntary sector. We have not as yet finalised our view as to the future of the 42 boards within this framework. My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has, therefore, specifically sought the views of key stakeholders.

National Probation Service

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many posts are vacant in the National Probation Service; for how long these posts have been vacant; what the average length of time taken to fill vacant posts was in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: The information requested is as follows:
	The total number of vacant posts within the National Probation Service as at 30 June 2003 was 1,059.9 full time equivalent, which equates to 5.61 per cent. of the total workforce and is based on agreed funded establishments as at the 1 April 2003.
	The National Probation Directorate (NPD) does not collect information on the length of time for which posts remain vacant nor on the average length of time taken to fill vacant posts. The management of the recruitment process is the responsibility of each individual area and as such, will be influenced by area service-delivery priorities and external forces such as the local labour market.

National Probation Service

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the probation areas in England and Wales will receive less in real terms under the financial settlement for 2004–05, after central recharging and performance-linked penalties are taken into account.

Paul Goggins: A final decision about the budget for the National Probation Service has not yet been made. The gross domestic product (GDP) deflator set by the Treasury is 2.5 per cent. for 2004–05. It is not expected that any probation areas will have an increase in their main resource allocation of less than the GDP deflator, after central recharging (outside the control of the local area) and performance-linked penalties are taken into account.

Official Receptions

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on the serving of beer at official receptions.

Fiona Mactaggart: A mixture of both soft and alcoholic drinks are served at official functions as appropriate.

Parliamentary Questions

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 2 December 2003, Official Report, column 43W, on written answers, how many of the parliamentary questions tabled prior to the last four days available for tabling have now been answered; and if he will list in respect of those not yet answered (a) the date of tabling and (b) the reason for the delay.

Fiona Mactaggart: holding answer 18 December 2003
	All parliamentary questions tabled prior to the last four days of tabling have now been answered with the exception of ten which still await a full reply. Of these five were tabled either at the end of October or in early November. The majority of these have been delayed because the detailed information requested is being compiled.

Passports (Vivien and Ambrose Cofie)

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Passport Office will return to Vivien and Ambrose Cofie their passports.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 15 December 2003
	I wrote to my hon. Friend on 23 January 2004.

Prison Deaths

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many non-natural deaths have occurred in prisons in England and Wales during the last five years for which figures are available.

Paul Goggins: The information requested is provided in the following table:
	
		
			  Number of self-inflicted deaths(60) Number of homicides(61) Other non-natural causes of deaths(62) 
		
		
			 1999 91 0 0 
			 2000 81 3 1 
			 2001 73 0 0 
			 2002 95 0 2 
			 2003 94 1 1 
		
	
	(60) The Prison Service employs the term "self-inflicted death" which includes all those deaths where it appears the person may have acted specifically to take his/her own life.
	(61) Includes alleged homicides
	(62) Includes accidents
	Reducing the number of self-inflicted deaths and instances of self-harm in prison establishments is a ministerial and Prison Service priority. A proactive three-year programme to develop policies and practices to reduce prisoner suicide and manage self- harm began in April 2001. The programme has included:
	The training of suicide prevention coordinators, now operating in the majority of prisons
	The increased provision of prisoner peer support through schemes such as 'Insiders' and Samaritan-led 'Listeners'
	An investment of £21 million in six 'safer local' prisons: Feltham, Leeds, Wandsworth, Winchester, Eastwood Park and Birmingham
	Projects to develop safer prison design, including safer cells.
	Over recent months a wide-ranging review of this programme has taken place in consultation with partner agencies such as the Youth Justice Board and outside organisations such as Samaritans, taking into account the evaluations of pilot projects and emerging research findings. This review will inform future suicide prevention strategy beyond April 2004.
	The Prison Service is also developing a violence reduction strategy that re-addresses problems of inter-prisoner violence and bullying by providing a national framework of protective mechanisms and positive behaviour management. A new national cell-sharing risk assessment tool was introduced in June 2002 to enable staff at reception to identify those who may be high-risk prisoners, to prevent cell sharing that may generate prisoner-on-prisoner assaults, and to take the necessary steps to minimise potential harm to others. This procedure is currently being revised in the light of the alleged homicide in 2003.

Prison Disturbances

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many disturbances there were at prisons in England and Wales in (a) 2001, (b) 2002 and (c) 2003; at which establishment the disturbances took place; and what the cost to the Prison Service was of the damage caused by each disturbance.

Paul Goggins: The incident classification system used by the Prison Service does not include 'disturbance'. Incident types most often associated with disturbances are concerted indiscipline, hostage taking, at height incidents (including rooftop protests), barricades and combinations of these. The information given in the following table records the numbers and location of incidents that were serious enough to warrant the opening of the Gold Command suite at Prison Service Headquarters. The Prison Service does not maintain a record of the cost of damage arising from incidents and such information could only be gathered at disproportionate cost.
	
		Number of incidents for which Gold Command suite was openedin 2001
		
			 Establishment Total 
		
		
			 Ashfield 1 
			 Aylesbury 1 
			 Belmarsh 2 
			 Bullingdon 1 
			 Canterbury 1 
			 Castington 3 
			 Deerbolt 1 
			 Dovegate 1 
			 Dover 3 
			 Full Button 1 
			 Guys Marsh 2 
			 Haslar 1 
			 High Down 1 
			 Hull 1 
			 Leicester 1 
			 Lindholme 1 
			 Littlehey 1 
			 Manchester 1 
			 Moorland 4 
			 Norwich 1 
			 Onley 3 
			 Parkhurst 2 
			 Pentonville 1 
			 Ranby 1 
			 Reading 1 
			 Rochester 1 
			 Rye Hill 1 
			 Swaleside 1 
			 Wakefield 1 
			 Total 41 
		
	
	
		Number of incidents for which Gold Command suite was opened in 2002
		
			 Establishment Total 
		
		
			 Altcourse 1 
			 Ashfield 3 
			 Belmarsh 2 
			 Blakenhurst 2 
			 Bristol 1 
			 Brixton 1 
			 Castington 3 
			 Dartmoor 1 
			 Deerbolt 1 
			 Doncaster 3 
			 Dorchester 1 
			 Durham 2 
			 Elmley 1 
			 Everthorpe 1 
			 Exeter 1 
			 Forest Bank 1 
			 Glen Parva 3 
			 Gloucester 2 
			 Guys Marsh 1 
			 Haslar 1 
			 High Down 1 
			 Highpoint North 1 
			 Hull 1 
			 Lincoln 3 
			 Lindholme 1 
			 Littlehey 2 
			 Liverpool 2 
			 Long Lartin 2 
			 Moorland 4 
			 Norwich 2 
			 Nottingham 1 
			 Onley 2 
			 Parkhurst 5 
			 Pentonville 1 
			 Ranby 3 
			 Stoke Heath 1 
			 Swaleside 1 
			 Swinfen Hall 1 
			 Wandsworth 1 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 1 
			 Total 68 
		
	
	
		Number of incidents for which Gold Command suite was opened in 2003 to 9 December
		
			 Establishment Total 
		
		
			 Ashfield 1 
			 Brixton 1 
			 Dartmoor 1 
			 Exeter 1 
			 Forest Bank 1 
			 Full Button 1 
			 Haverigg 1 
			 High Down 1 
			 Hindley 1 
			 Huntercombe 2 
			 Leicester 1 
			 Lindholme 1 
			 Liverpool 1 
			 Moorland 2 
			 Northallerton 1 
			 Ranby 2 
			 Stoke Heath 1 
			 Swinfen Hall 1 
			 Weare 1 
			 Wealstun 1 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 1 
			 Total 24

Prison Population

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the probable accuracy of each of the different forecast average prison populations set out in scenarios A-D in the Home Office Prison Population Brief, England and Wales: March 2003 (27/10/03).

Paul Goggins: The prison projections model has been shown to be accurate in predicting the prison population given the correct assumptions about sentencing. It is not possible to be certain about the direction of future trends in sentencing because trends observed over a number of years cannot be assumed to continue. It is for this reason that the projections cover a range of different scenarios and are regularly updated to take account of changing trends and new policies affecting the prison population. The central projections were updated in the summer and published in the April Prison Population Brief in September. The actual prison population was 116 below the projection used for planning purposes on 12 December 2003.
	The projections take into account known changes in policy and legislation where the relevant legislation has been passed and a timetable agreed for implementation. The impacts of the new Criminal Justice Act are therefore yet to be included.

Prison Suicides

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) men, (b) women and (c) juveniles have committed suicide while held by the Prison Service in each of the last five years for which records exist.

Paul Goggins: The information requested is provided in the following table.
	
		
			 Calendar year Number of male self-inflicted deaths (not including juveniles) Number of female self-inflicted deaths (not including juveniles) Number of juvenile self-inflicted deaths (aged 15–17)(63) 
		
		
			 1999 84 5 2 
			 2000 70 8 3 
			 2001 64 6 3 
			 2002 84 9 2 
			 2003 80 14 0 
		
	
	(63) These 10 self-inflicted deaths all involved male juveniles.
	The Prison Service employs the term 'self-inflicted death' rather than 'suicide.' This includes all those deaths where it appears the person may have acted specifically to take his/her own life.
	Reducing the number of self-inflicted deaths and instances of self-harm in prison establishments is a ministerial and Prison Service priority. A proactive three-year programme to develop policies and practices to reduce prisoner suicide and manage self-harm began in April 2001. The programme has included:
	The training of suicide prevention coordinators, now operating in the majority of prisons.
	The increased provision of prisoner peer support through schemes such as 'Insiders' and Samaritan-led 'Listeners'.
	An investment of £21 million in six 'Safer Local' prisons: Feltham, Leeds, Wandsworth, Winchester, Eastwood Park and Birmingham.
	Projects to develop safer prison design, including safer cells.
	Over recent months a wide-ranging review of this programme has taken place in consultation with partner agencies such as the Youth Justice Board and outside organisations such as Samaritans, taking into account the evaluations of pilot projects and emerging research findings. This review will inform future suicide prevention strategy beyond April 2004.

Prisoner Transfers

Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the time it takes to transfer (a) male and (b) female remand prisoners to prison from court.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 22 January 2004
	Private sector contractors are responsible for carrying out the movement of prisoners from courts to prisons. Remand and convicted prisoners, including male and female prisoners, can travel in the same vehicle. No central record of journey times is kept, nor is it possible to identify any differences in journey times between remand and convicted, male and female prisoners.
	Contractors are required to deliver prisoners to courts before 9.30 am and back to prisons before their receptions close. Contract managers are robust in monitoring their performance and there are financial remedies built into the present contracts for failure to deliver prisoners to prisons on time.

Prisoner Transfers

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners have been transferred between prisons due to population pressures in the last year.

Paul Goggins: There are around 100,000 prisoner moves between prisons each year. These moves may be for a number of reasons, such as security, discipline or as a result of normal sentence planning. In addition, prisoners may be moved to ensure full and effective use of places within the prison estate. The reasons for prisoner moves are not recorded centrally.

Prisoners on Release

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the monetary grant made available to prisoners on release from gaol is different if a prisoner provides no fixed abode as their address.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 21 January 2004
	A higher rate of discharge grant (£94.40) is paid to prisoners on release only if there is a need to seek, obtain and pay for accommodation. It is only paid to prisoners with no accommodation arranged in advance if this arises through no fault of the prisoner. Otherwise the standard rates of discharge grant paid are £46.75 (for prisoners aged 25 and older) or £37 (for prisoners aged 18 to 24).

Prisoners on Release

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners were released from gaol in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 21 January 2004
	91,100 sentenced prisoners were discharged from prisons in England and Wales in 2002.

Prisons

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when Bromsfield prison will be ready to receive prisoners.

Paul Goggins: Construction of Her Majesty's Prison Bromsfield is progressing to schedule and the prison will be ready to open on 17 June 2004, the date specified in the contract.

Prisons

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the (a) annual cost and (b) original budget figure for running each prison was in each year since 1997.

Paul Goggins: The table sets out the expenditure, net of any receipts from other Government Departments (Department for Education and Skills, Department of Health and Youth Justice Board), for the public sector prisons for the financial years 1997–98 to 2002–03.
	It would incur disproportionate cost to provide details of the original budget allocations to establishments.
	
		
			 Establishment 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Acklington 8,909,492 10,023,027 11, 335,355 12,276,018 12,306,951 13,054,221 
			 Albany 8,749,528 8,697,711 8,909,118 9,585,057 9,638,824 10,214,992 
			 Aldington 2,411,489 2,434,701 886,808 7,833,229 7,977,359 8,886,442 
			 Ashwell 6,697,763 7,408,379 7,680,868 2,697,533 2,802,068 3,010,142 
			 Askham Grange 2,331,594 2,401,007 2,676,889 10,192,227 10,900,371 11,665,889 
			 Aylesbury 7,650,509 9,077,007 10,040,984 8,139,154 8,449,674 9,496,198 
			 Bedford 7,018,414 7,248,760 7,563,315 28,994,092 30,948,620 31,517,399 
			 Belmarsh 25,315,234 26,527,865 27,314,961 16,420,359 16,696,491 18,407,049 
			 Birmingham 15,326,661 15,028,320 15,967,037 2,523,343 6,024,690 12,205,742 
			 Blantyre House 2,196,754 2,188,236 2,396,923 9,927,491 2,490,332 2,610,224 
			 Blundeston 8,425,017 8,810,746 9,012,0861 11,396,515 9,982,610 10,665,341 
			 Brinsford 8,791,953 9,061,958 9,961,549 16,439,320 12,097,691 13,067,320 
			 Bristol 15,146,051 15,744,783 16,272,600 19,402,789 17,134,205 17,726,084 
			 Brixton 17,174,388 17,897,7001 18,166,073 5,241,812 19,503,711 19,738,370 
			 Brockhill 4,051,940 4,763,808 4,963,904 4,653,131 5,644,934 6,545,910 
			 Bullingdon 12,031,519 12,864,241 13,384,846 14,695,594 6,696,946 8,002,424 
			 Bullwood Hall 4,106,028 4,172,806 4,657,885 5,270,554 15,178,114 16,450,925 
			 Camp Hill 8,517,792 8,650,009 9,072,291 9,625,242 5,629,475 6,735,862 
			 Canterbury 6,521,811 6,654,628 8,217,174 9,557,146 10,096,506 10,773,950 
			 Cardiff 11,229,725 11,629,233 12,000,937 12,531,994 6,268,130 6,718,209 
			 Castington 5,997,825 7,118,033 9,525,575 10,763,724 13,370,996 14,263,886 
			 Channings Wood 9,502,293 9,941,726 10,729,531 11,218,525 11,197,427 12,033,756 
			 Chelmsford 8,734,815 8,949,156 9,663,883 10,629,047 11,238,889 12,381,004 
			 Colchester 74,527 6,704,661 7,504,736 7,506,834 11,573,580 12,872,923 
			 Coldingley 6,714,472 3,227,938 3,304,663 3,385,424 7,909,234 8,151,903 
			 Cookham Wood 3,126,929 13,593,186 13,503,044 14,982,068 3,576,878 3,973,515 
			 Dartmoor 12,835,557 8,132,314 8,821,695 9,561,925 14,631,698 14,952,729 
			 Deerbolt 7,620,113 4,662,999 4,929,515 5,455,195 9,711,053 10,672,540 
			 Dorchester 4,445,551 6,014,723 6,365,773 6,620,509 5,726,272 6,397,176 
			 Dover 5,633,165 6,392,905 6,668,344 6,491,510 6,728,429 7,531,999 
			 Downview 6,199,171 4,255,108 4,625,943 4,711,306 7,158,940 8,572,194 
			 Drake Hall 4,056,811 19,708,046 20,409,679 21,911,360 5,694,213 6,516,051 
			 Durham 18,607,149 1, 793,731 1,887,069 2,002,554 22,550,479 23,777,700 
			 East Sutton Park 1, 773,1 22 5,870,662 6,848,512 7,131,671 2,198.632 2,663,045 
			 Eastwood Park 4,607,587 14,200,527 14,523,519 15,212,300 7,352,500 8,042,491 
			 Elmley 12,632,506 5,690,464 6,074,310 6,392,089 15,151,353 16,103,052 
			 Erlestoke 5,610,877 7,879,992 8,142,013 8,193,360 6,191,130 6,908,722 
			 Everthorpe 7,597,540 9,041,398 9,854,666 9,811,721 7,959,428 8,302,402 
			 Exeter 8,459,288 11,180,260 11,297,289 11,717,517 10,282,669 11,607,391 
			 Featherstone 10,686,762 17,065,612 19,331,692 24,01 0.372 12,549,693 13,097,562 
			 Feltham 16,214,569 6,106,107 6,007,952 6,371,063 24,409,616 30,914,848 
			 Ford 5,977,876 4,120,051 4,456,984 4,950,895 6,271,678 7,235,485 
			 Foston Hall 3,158,492 20,685,706 23,178,174 24,079,724 5,299,241 6,645,225 
			 Frankland 17,174,531 21,743,468 22,664,102 23,505,345 24,550,210 26,165,447 
			 Full Sutton 20,454,411 11,862,882 12,200,677 12,876,755 23,541,026 24,773,246 
			 Garth 11,464,277 8,522,977 8,918,173 9,217,605 12,879,054 13,576,683 
			 Gartree 8,352,713 14,266,498 15,462,663 15,968,177 8,886,522 8,907,622 
			 Glen Parva 13,386,394 6,271,350 6,563,470 6,922,287 16,615,880 17,838,628 
			 Gloucester 6,209,360 9,658,212 10,507,804 11,295,755 7,417,888 7,925,897 
			 Grendon 9,211,347 7,295,626 8,132,646 8,358,283 11,293,398 11,834,438 
			 Guys Marsh 6,230,232 2,700,663 2,875,447 2,948,844 8,103,303 8,984,586 
			 Haslar 2,390,006 3,153,390 3,107,653 4,400,554 2,847,598 3,430,226 
			 Hatfield 4,008,611 9,223,118 9,012,125 9,291,388 4,116,132 merge withmoorland 
			 Haverigg 9,551,875 2,560,980 2,650,196 2,777,519 9,638,719 9,846,313 
			 Hewell Grange 2,641,559 16,295,901 16,499,110 17,423,192 3,018,642 3,073,260 
			 High Down 14,750,866 13,250,074 14,677,886 15,485,655 17,266,744 18,620,299 
			 Highpoint 11,694,637 10,801,497 11,287,011 11,883,438 16,860,131 18,628,779 
			 Hindley 10,569,836 9,512,609 10,632,555 11,699,929 13,429,476 17,104,335 
			 Hollesley Bay Colony 10,762,342 18,388,002 19,004,311 19,759,757 12,710.164 14,900,729 
			 Holloway 17,843,585 14,779,354 15,400,969 16,697,115 20,210,798 24,950,875 
			 HolmeHouse 14,409,492 12,209,399 12,872,717 13,376,716 16,789,328 18,220,248 
			 Hull 11,720,848 7,268,697 8,249,263 8,905,472 13,824,391 17,551,047 
			 Huntercombe 5,253,859 4,238,987 4,518,246 4,945,046 10,066,596 12,126,323 
			 Kingston 3,951,883 9,877,289 9,927,441 9,671,523 4,748,471 5,133,177 
			 Kirkharn 9,759,154 2,355,686 2,665,271 2,745,209 10.642.725 11,292,357 
			 Kirklevington range 2,439,348 4,797,324 5,062,966 5,293,531 2,806,220 3,088,564 
			 Lancaster Castle 4,638,957 9,833,263 10,461,778 11,808,158 5,718,902 6,137,630 
			 Lancaster Farms 9,661,162 2,451,116 2,786,779 2,838,862 11,726,248 13,087,839 
			 Latchmere House 2,496,035 20,059,553 21,338,015 23,720,772 3,052,466 3,419,175 
			 Leeds 18,394,596 7,864,959 7,886,714 8,294,295 23,291,510 24,161,348 
			 Leicester 7,927,419 9,304,629 9,951,1l8 9,929,541 8,204,348 81462,450 
			 Lewes 9,234,680 7,708,880 8,008,974 8,298,615 9,985,425 10,262,873 
			 Leyhill 7,173,428 10,775,537 11,163,759 11,436,103 8,585,073 9,761,621 
			 Lincoln 10,822,223 13,758,543 14,237,522 15,677,113 11,655,841 13,468,973 
			 Lindholme 12,241,535 9,087,894 9,454,701 10,094,258 15,386,512 16,782,005 
			 Littlehey 8,960,232 23,977,904 25,072,336 26,382,433 10,376,197 10,532,341 
			 Liverpool 23,391,485 17,348,401 19,035,891 19,767,607 25,565,332 26,779,122 
			 Long Lartin 15,764,682 6,159,671 6,744,065 7,037,553 20,122,537 20,297,349 
			 Low Newton 5,770,762 10,657,161 10,804,102 11,464,235 7,547,572 8,027,668 
			 Maidstone 9,817,528 25,904,732 26,780,910 28,052,557 10,405,357 11,094,821 
			 Manchester 23,679,485 13,222,451 13,684,732 14,421,919 26,037,371 25,453,776 
			 Moorland 12,184,621 2,592,947 2,673,555 3,277,930 15,006,469 20,902,463 
			 Morton Hall 2,536,317 8,787,099 10,079,426 11,397,462 4,821,307 6,514,375 
			 Mount (The) 8,296,716 7,514,987 8,014,446 8,733,767 11,565,509 12,808,539 
			 New Hall 6,982,789 3,220,748 3,310,007 3,742,731 10,413,876 11,888,471 
			 North Sea Camp 3,315,222 4,733,976 4,867,453 5,485,692 3,738,139 4,446,814 
			 Northallerton 4,727,462 12,264,199 13,246,302 13,817,885 5,080,145 5,273,815 
			 Norwich 11,865,139 8,633,539 9,771,270 10,207,330 14,164,851 15,229,088 
			 Nottingham 8,140,323 10,546,373 12,044,121 12,673,587 10,413,672 11,178,582 
			 Onley 9,232,294 11,014,381 11,848,896 12,216,694 13,566,358 14,770,000 
			 Parkhurst 10,806,067 19,311,606 20,079,586 20,816,593 12,434,863 13,259,482 
			 Pentonville 17,276,316 9,259,219 9,703,555 10,719,880 22,239,323 25,047,521 
			 Portland 8,844,909 12,048,350 12,473,587 12,699,382 11,333,924 11,106,772 
			 Preston 12,567,260 10,875,729 11,901,688 12,902,004 13,192,099 14,005,563 
			 Ranby 9,256,035 5,501,540 5,884,279 6,417,856 12,851,506 14,269,727 
			 Reading 5,045,213 15,983,571 15,450,926 15,920,099 6,761,178 7,080,270 
			 Risley 15,895,377 8,230,782 8,805,058 9,335,373 16,393,281 18,221,821 
			 Rochester 8,035,427 3,531,672 4,155,955 4,535,019 8,790,555 8,601,059 
			 Send 3,291,301 4,205,992 4,673,206 4,915,667 4,609,307 4,973,567 
			 Shepton Mallet 3,938,431 5,880,953 6,352,381 6,640,281 4,833,094 4,990,999 
			 Shrewsbury 5,493,907 9,824,844 10,484,861 10,924,138 6,518,034 7,340,719 
			 Stafford 9,451,888 6,305,489 6,373,876 6,648,876 10,624,651 12,305,294 
			 Standford Hill 6,269,281 8,297,202 8,910,829 9,334,943 7,308,028 8,107,638 
			 Stocken 7,220,581 9,840,541 11,109,509 12,861,620 9,454,466 10,199,203 
			 Stoke Heath 8,374,468 8,701,379 10,340,864 10,453,733 13,631,592 15,705,333 
			 Styal 6,462,026 7,002,129 7,248,636 7,446,036 10,894,273 11,529,555 
			 Sudbury 6,914,035 11,175,124 12,643,399 13,300,578 7,606,310 7,700,779 
			 Swaleside 10,858,272 6,789,513 7,007,193 7,235,116 13,493,143 13,776,388 
			 Swansea 6,524,813 6,646,469 7,035,146 7,138,237 7,511,933 8,219,128 
			 Swinfen Hall 5,193,891 6,322,349 6,637,515 6,875,677 7,445,594 7,860,939 
			 Thorn Cross 6,140,617 5,423,030 5,978,839 6,415,420 7,369,808 7,370,209 
			 Usk/HMYOI Prescoed 5,221,149 8,624,297 8,775,236 9,026,083 6,805,526 7,171,809 
			 Verne (The) 8,493,944 18,687,468 18,979,626 20,327,832 9,534,353 10,002,290 
			 Wakefield 17,706,563 21,530,155 23,135,281 24,660,699 19,914,099 20,955,508 
			 Wandsworth 20,228,522 9,035,066 9,678,517 9,965,816 25,450,136 27,936,164 
			 Wayland 8,788,315 9,579,654 10,346,156 10,778,946 9,928,885 10,818,403 
			 Wealstun 9,534,969 7,019,536 6,835,969 7,126,526 10,870,434 11,659,314 
			 Weare (The) 6,062,308 6,777,199 8,662,259 9,059,926 7,340,016 7–920,458 
			 Wellingborough 6,024,330 4,593,312 4,673,381 5,001,314 9,133,034 9,306,369 
			 Werrington 3,600,342 6,813,413 7,510,166 8,1 65,532 5,105,326 5,820,567 
			 Wetherby 6,096,628 4,303,089 4,588,726 4,784,995 8,645,080 10,161,472 
			 Whatton 4,033,449 20,326,350 20,794,066 22,226,567 4,877,528 5,783,699 
			 Whitemoor 19,743,783 10,989,602 11,191,441 11,468,743 22,611,769 24,138,779 
			 Winchester 11,532,770 18,838,067 19,316,507 21,582,330 11,907,739 13,206,337 
			 Woodhill 17,230,414 20,861,114 21,159,767 22,736,149 22,103,665 23,631,597 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 20,654,121 13,310,312 14,274,322 15,150,405 23,256,552 24.691,189 
			 Wymott 13,519,807 — — — 14,929,816 15,501,820

Prisons

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if he will list the smaller prisons that are being considered for closure to redirect resources into community punishments;
	(2)  if he will list the sites that are being considered to erect the new generation of larger prisons;
	(3)  if he will publish the detailed investment case that the Department is making to the Treasury to close smaller prisons and erect larger prisons.

Paul Goggins: The Home Office is working on a value for money case for a replacement programme to create a new generation of larger prisons with the facilities needed to deliver effective programmes designed to reduce re-offending. New large prisons could also provide economies of scale, which would allow us to close some smaller prisons and redirect resources to community punishments. This case will be subject of discussion in the forthcoming Spending Review the outcome of which will be published. We will not publish the case we make to the Treasury on which decisions are taken.
	There is an established procedure for the announcement of decisions to change the role of or close prisons. Once Ministers take a decision to change the role of or close a prison, staff and local MP's affected by the change or closure are briefed before the formal announcement.
	A survey has been commissioned to identify suitable sites for new, large prisons although no sites have yet been purchased or other commitments made. To be effective in delivering regimes that aid rehabilitation and reduce re-offending new sites need to be close to, or have good transport links with, large conurbations. The search is concentrating on sites available in London and the south east, the west Midlands, the north west and Wales. These are the regions that have the greatest need for additional prison capacity at this stage.

Prisons

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what recent research he has commissioned into the effectiveness of mandatory drug testing in prisons;
	(2)  when he will publish the findings of the research into the effectiveness of mandatory drug testing in prisons.

Paul Goggins: A research study on the impact of the Mandatory Drug Testing programme in prisons is being undertaken by the Office for National Statistics and National Addiction Centre. Their report is now expected to be available in the Spring of 2004.

Prisons

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of seasonal variations in the seizure of illegal drugs (a) within prisons and (b) from individuals visiting prisons;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of seasonal variations in the rate of positive mandatory drug tests in prisons.

Paul Goggins: Available data on seizures of drugs in prisons and on visitors involved in suspicious incidents do not show any seasonal trends. Random mandatory drug test (MDT) rates in prisons fluctuate quite widely on a monthly basis. However, there is some evidence nationally of a pattern of slight increases in drug misuse in the months of July, August and December.

Probation Boards

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost of establishing and running probation boards was in (a) 2000–01, (b) 2001–02 and (c) 2002–03.

Paul Goggins: The cost of running the local probation boards in the three years in question is:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 2000–01 (Estimated) 529.5 
			 2001–02 580.1 
			 2001–03 626.8 
		
	
	The estimated transition costs incurred to set up the new board arrangements was £2 million, excluding the costs of amalgamating some of the boards. Prior to April 2001, there were 54 probation committees. These were largely autonomous organisations, and produced their own accounts under local authority rules and guidelines. The accounts were not consolidated by the Home Office. The accounts for 2000–01 also included the cost of the Family Court Welfare Service, which transferred out of the Probation Service on 1 April 2001 and is therefore not included in the costs for 2001–02 and 2002–03.

Rape/Sexual Offences Helpline

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the national helpline for victims of rape and sexual offences will be operational.

Paul Goggins: Plans for the national rape helpline are currently being developed and this matter is under consideration.

Sex Offender Orders

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders are subject to sex offender orders; and how many sex offender orders have been granted in each year since 1999.

Paul Goggins: Sex Offenders Orders (SOOs) came into force on 1 December 1998 under the Crime and Disorder Act and were subsequently amended by the Police Reform Act 2002. There is no centrally held record of the number of offenders currently the subject of a SOO. However, a SOO has effect for a period not less than five years and can only be discharged before the end of this period with the consent of the police and the defendant. In addition, an individual may only be subject to one SOO at any one time. Therefore the number of SOOs granted by the courts may be used as an estimate to the number of offenders currently subject to such orders.
	Since 2001, statistics on the number of SOOs have been collated under the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA). On 15 September this year, I made a Written Statement to the House announcing the publication of the 2002–03 MAPPA Annual Reports, copies of which I placed in the Library.
	Statistics in MAPPA annual reports show that in the period 2002–03, 91 orders were granted. In the period 2001–02, 81 orders were granted.
	Between 1 December 1998 and 31 March 2001, it is estimated that a total of 92 SOOs were made.

Child Protection

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps are being taken to ensure that all relevant Inspectorates implement Recommendation 2.15 of the Joint Chief Inspectors' report on Arrangements to Safeguard Children.

Paul Goggins: The three relevant Home Office Inspectorates are Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons and Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation. I am not able to comment on action by other Inspectorates.
	Inspection activity is currently being undertaken by the Home Office Inspectorates in respect of relevant aspects of recommendation 2.15 of the joint Chief Inspectors' report, as follows:
	(a) In relation to young offender institutions, inspection of child protection arrangements is a central part of each inspection by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons of Young Offender Institutions and Immigration Removal Centres holding children and young people aged under 18 years. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons also advises Her Majesty's Prison Service on children's safeguarding matters, for example supporting a recent review of safeguarding arrangements in all Young Offender Institutions holding children. The inspectorate also undertakes joint inspection of Secure Training Centres with the Social Service Inspectorate.
	(b) In relation to the impact of domestic violence on children:
	Police issues: Domestic violence is an area of police activity specifically considered by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) during scheduled Inspections of police forces undertaken during a year. In addition, during 2003, a joint inspection of domestic violence was undertaken by HMIC and the Crown Prosecution Services Inspectorate, which included specific consideration of children's safeguarding issues. The report is due to be published early in 2004. A major HMIC Thematic Inspection on Child Protection is also planned for 2004, to address one of the recommendations made by Lord Laming following the Climbie Inquiry.
	Probation issues: A thematic element on domestic violence, with a clear focus on children, has been included in the main inspection programme of probation areas by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation—the Effective Supervision Inspection programme. The report on this element is due to be published in summer 2004. The Effective Supervision Inspection programme also includes general consideration of child protection issues in all probation areas.
	(c) In relation to the work of Youth Offending Teams (YOTs), a joint inspection programme of YOTs is under way, led by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation with involvement from Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons (along with four other inspectorates). The methodology has been designed to ensure that children's safeguarding issues are covered specifically from early in 2004.
	More generally, alongside the specific work above, the Government have put in place arrangements to commission from the Chief Inspectors of services involved with children a joint report on children's safeguards every three years. The next report is due in 2005, A Steering Group involving nine Inspectorates or other regulatory bodies and led by the Social Services Inspectorate has been established to prepare for this.
	It is intended that the aim of the report will be:
	To review the arrangements across agencies to safeguard children, giving particular attention to children's views and experiences, progress since the last report and the areas identified within the first review as requiring more attention. The review will result in a report to Government making recommendations as necessary.
	The themes and subject areas identified have been chosen to ensure that each of the issues highlighted in recommendation 2.15 of the last report is covered. Much of the inspection work will relate to cross-cutting issues between agencies.

Vulnerable Witnesses

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will assess the effectiveness of the guidance on vulnerable and intimidated witnesses under the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999.

Paul Goggins: Comprehensive guidance about vulnerable or intimidated witnesses (VIWs) was issued to practitioners in January 2002. There are no current plans to review this guidance.
	Rules of Court relating to Special Measures Directions under the 1999 Act came into force on 24 July 2002. These rules are now being reviewed to improve their effectiveness and it is expected that amending rules will be issued in the spring.
	Individual issues of effectiveness are considered as they arise by the national VIW steering group which meets regularly.

Sexual Assault Referral Centres

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  whether it is his policy that sexual assault referral centres should be at hospitals;
	(2)  what allocations have been made from the Home Office funds for sexual assault referral centres in 2003; and to whom;
	(3)  what plans he has to increase the numbers of sexual assault referral centres; when he intends further such centres to be in operation; and where they will be located;
	(4)  whether it is his policy that health trusts should be involved in the (a) establishment and (b) running of sexual assault referral centres in co-operation with the police;
	(5)  when the results of the evaluation of the sexual assault referral centres (a) Star, (b) Reach and (c) St. Mary's will be published;
	(6)  what the current estimate is of (a) the cost of establishing a sexual assault referral centre if a new build is necessary and (b) the annual cost of running a sexual assault referral centre;
	(7)  what directive has been issued to police forces on the role they ought to play in establishing sexual assault referral centres in areas where there are none;
	(8)  how he intends that further sexual assault referral centres should be financed for (a) capital and (b) revenue costs;
	(9)  when he expects to publish the evaluation of the Forensic Nurse project at St. Mary's Sexual Assault Referral Centre.

Paul Goggins: The Government are currently considering ways in which further support may be provided to victims of sexual crime. This objective may be achieved through the use of Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs); rape crisis and other counselling and support services; national or local telephone helplines; or some combination of these. We are looking at all the options as part of the work being undertaken to implement the national strategy for victims and witnesses, which was published in July 2003.
	An Inter Departmental Ministerial Group (IDMG) on Sexual Offending has been set up. It comprises representation from the Home Office, Department of Health, Department for Education and Skills, Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Constitutional Affairs, Law Officers' Department, Department of Trade and Industry and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. The group will focus on: prevention, protection, and support; taking forward the implementation of the Sexual Offences Act; and promoting an effective, joined up approach to tackling sexual offending. The Inter Departmental Ministerial Group will consider provisions for victims of sexual offences, including issues around the development and funding of SARCs throughout England and Wales.
	The Home Office has funded research into three existing SARCs: St. Mary's, Reach and Star. The interventions, which were funded from July 2000 to the end of March 2003, included: training a forensic nurse to conduct forensic examinations; an intervention to help reduce attrition; and an intervention to support young victims of sexual violence. An independent evaluation of these interventions and of the overall services of the three SARCs has now been completed and the findings are due to be published in late spring 2004.
	No directive has been issued to the police or health trusts on the role that they ought to play in the establishment of SARCs. The research findings and the Inter Departmental Ministerial Group will inform future policy on the development and funding of SARCs, including the development of good practice guidance. This will draw on the experience of existing SARC managers and victims.
	Many existing SARCs are based at hospitals and the police have worked closely with health trusts in their establishment. However, different models of SARC will be best suited to different areas and the needs of the local community. Funding of existing SARCs has been negotiated and agreed locally, in most cases between the police and local health authority. The cost of establishing and running a SARC will vary according to the model.
	The Home Office recently made funds available to support the development of SARCs. In September all police authorities were invited to bid for this funding. Grant offers are being finalised and an announcement will follow shortly.

Sexual Offenders

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  which steps are being taken to avoid offenders on the sexual offenders register (a) absconding and (b) changing their names without informing the police;
	(2)  how frequently offenders on the sexual offenders register who are resident in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon receive visits by the Cambridgeshire Constabulary.

Paul Goggins: The requirement for sex offenders to notify the police of their name and address was introduced in the Sex Offenders Act 1997 and has proved an invaluable tool in helping the police to monitor convicted sex offenders within their area. An offender who is subject to the notification requirements must inform the police within 14 days of using a new name or moving to a new address. A failure to comply with the requirements is a criminal offence, with the maximum punishment set at five years imprisonment. We estimate that compliance with the requirements is currently around 97 per cent.
	We are improving the notification requirements through the Sexual Offences Act 2003. Once the Act comes into force, relevant offenders will have to go to their local police station at least once every 12 months to confirm that the details held by the police are correct. They will also have to provide the police with their national insurance number and notify any change to their name or address within three days, rather than the current 14 days.
	The Sexual Offences Act also includes a new power which will enable the information notified by registered sex offenders to be regularly checked against information held by the Department of Work and Pensions, the UK Passport Service and the Driver Vehicle and Licensing Agency. The purpose of this is to verify that the information notified by relevant offenders is correct and this will help to identify more quickly those cases where an offender assumes a new name or address without telling the police or where an offender absconds.
	Sex offenders who are subject to the notification requirements will also:
	(a) continue to be visited by police officers as part of the routine management of sex offenders living in the community;
	(b) be subject to the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements which provide an increasingly effective way of enhancing public protection through better joint-agency working, including intelligence on where an offender is living and any other homes they may use;
	(c) have their details recorded on the new Violent and Sex Offender Register (ViSOR) database which will hold additional information and improve the sharing of intelligence between law enforcement agencies.

Sexual Offenders

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many offenders on the sexual offenders register resident in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon are classed by the police to be low risk;
	(2)  how many sexual offenders resident in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Huntingdon were on the register for sexual offences on 1 January.

Paul Goggins: On 15 September 2003 I made a Written Statement to the House announcing the publication of the 2002–03 Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) Annual Reports, copies of which I placed in the Library of the House. Each of the 42 Areas of England and Wales publish a MAPPA Annual Report and this year's contain a more detailed breakdown of the number of sexual and violent offenders in each area and some of the outcomes of multi-agency public protection work. Cambridgeshire's MAPPA report stated that there were 282 registered offenders in the area on 31 March 2003. Statistics are not available for each town in the county.
	Cambridgeshire Constabulary has informed me that 42 per cent. of registered sex offenders in the county are classed as "low risk". In line with other police areas, the offenders classed as "very high risk" are visited at least once a month; those classed as "high risk", at least once every two months; those classed as "medium risk", at least once every six months and those classed as "low risk", at least once every 12 months.

Small Businesses

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department uses a database of individual small businesses for consultation purposes.

Fiona Mactaggart: Yes, the Home Office has used the small firms database supplied by the Small Business Service twice

Speeding

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much revenue the Metropolitan Police received from the operation of (a) speed and (b) red light cameras in 2002; and how much was (i) imposed and (ii) collected in fines resulting from (A) speed and (B) red light cameras in London in each of the last five years.

Caroline Flint: The amount of revenue which the Metropolitan Police received from the operation of safety (speed and red light) cameras in 2002 is not yet known. Police forces receive income from safety camera fixed penalties under the provisions of the national safety camera netting-off scheme. The London Safety Camera Partnership, of which the Metropolitan Police are a member, joined the scheme in July 2002. Partnership performance and revenue received, from this time up to March 2003, will be detailed in the next report on the progress of the national safety camera scheme. The Department for Transport, which manages the scheme, expect to publish this report in March 2004.
	Before 2002, the Metropolitan Police received no income from safety the number of speeding and red-light offences detected by cameras in the Metropolitan and City of London Police areas and the estimated revenue for the five years up to 2001 is shown in the table. Information for 2002 will be available in the next few months.
	
		Fixed penalty and court proceedings data for speeding and traffic light offences detected by cameras(64) , (65) , (66) in the Metropolitan Police District (including city of London), 1997–2001
		
			 Fixed Penalties Court Proceedings 
			 Offence and year Number of tickets Estimated revenue (£) Number of fines Total amount of fine (£) Average fine (£) 
		
		
			 Speeding offences(65) 
			 1997 15,300 612,900 2,500 259,600 102 
			 1998 14,200 566,200 2,900 356,800 125 
			 1999 13,000 521,920 2,600 288,400 111 
			 2000 44,100 1,910,700 2,200 256,700 115 
			 2001 52,100 3,128,600 4,500 513,700 114 
			  Traffic light offences(66)   
			 1997 10,800 433,900 1,300 94,200 75 
			 1998 9,700 386,700 1,200 95,500 78 
			 1999 12,100 483,200 2,000 178,300 88 
			 2000 22,200 961,400 5,900 525,900 88 
			 2001 10,800 646,900 6,600 478,800 73 
		
	
	(64) Automatic cameras until 1998, all camera types from 1999.
	(65) Offences under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 and The Motor Vehicles (Speed Limits on Motorways) Regulations 1973.
	(66) Offences under the Road Traffic Act 1988 and The Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 1994.
	Note:
	1. Paid i.e. no further action.
	2. Estimate based on £40 fixed penalty charge to October 2000. From November 2000 the penalty was raised to £60.
	3. Estimates were made to cover the loss of fixed penalty data by the Metropolitan Police for October 1999.
	4. Excludes City of London

Widows and Widowers

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) widows and (b) widowers have been widowed in such a way that an inquest has been required in each of the years 1997 to 2002.

Paul Goggins: This information is not collected centrally.
	The number of inquests held in each year from 1997 to 2002 is contained in Table 3 of the Home Office Statistical Bulletin "Deaths reported to coroners, England and Wales, 2002", a copy of which is in the Library. It is not possible to deduce from this table the proportion of deceased persons represented by those inquests who would have left a widow or widower.

Women Prisoners

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Government are taking to reduce the number of women held on remand.

Paul Goggins: The significant increase in the female prison population, and the wider consequences of this in terms of disruption to their families, particularly their children, underlines the importance of using custody as a last resort.
	The Women's Offending Reduction Programme (WORP) is a three-year programme that aims to promote a more focused and joined-up response to the range of factors that have an impact on why women offend.
	A long-term aim of the WORP is to reduce the number of women in custody. We are particularly concerned about the 58 per cent. of women held on remand who do not go on to receive a custodial sentence. This is why the WORP focuses on the need to maximise the opportunities for diversion at the pre-sentence stage.
	Gender specific training and guidance for sentencers, court report writers and bail information staff will be supported by the development of more appropriate community interventions that are better tailored to meet the needs of women, particularly those with mental health and substance misuse problems. Ensuring appropriate housing or bail hostel provision for women will also be key to reducing the use of remand. The potential for diversion is likely to be increased by improving the court's confidence in available community provision.

Young Offenders

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements are made by youth offending teams to escort juvenile prisoners home on release from prison.

Paul Goggins: Arrangements for escorting juveniles home on release are made on a case-by-case basis, usually at the final review meeting at the end of the period in custody. The preferred arrangement is for a parent, relation or other carer to meet the young person and take him or her home. Where this is not possible—for example, where alternative accommodation has been arranged—a youth offending team worker will usually accompany the young person.
	In reaching decisions the age and assessed vulnerability of the young person is always taken into account.

Young Offenders

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his plans to provide drug treatment for young offenders addicted to drugs in (a) the north west and (b) Lancashire.

Caroline Flint: To ensure that effective treatment is available when it is needed, we have made significant investments in the youth justice system and drug treatment sector throughout the United Kingdom with the north west and Lancashire among those areas benefiting.
	Sustained investment in young peoples drug treatment, means that by March 2004 95 per cent. of all drug action teams (DATs) will provide a minimum of six different types of treatment interventions, which meet a tough set of young peoples focused quality standards. The interventions include restricted and Tier 3 services.
	In addition, the Youth Justice Board (YJB) is providing £8.5million funding each year to give all 155 youth offending teams across England and Wales access to an allocated named drugs worker. The drugs worker is able to assess the needs of young people and ensure that they receive appropriate treatment or other interventions. This project is currently being evaluated by the Home Office.
	An arrest referral scheme for young people is currently being piloted, to get young offenders into treatment or other appropriate interventions as early as possible. £6 million is being invested to pilot arrest referral for young people in 10 high crime areas across England including Liverpool and Manchester. Trained staff in the police custody suites identify if young people have a substance misuse issue and refer them to appropriate treatment or intervention.

Youth Justice System

David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the use of deprivation of liberty in the youth justice system.

Paul Goggins: Young offenders should be deprived of their liberty only as a last resort. Courts considering a custodial sentence must be satisfied that the offending behaviour is so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified or, in the case of a violent or sexual offence, that such a sentence is needed to protect the public from serious harm. The only other situation where custody can be given is where the young offender refuses to co-operate with the requirements of a supervision order or a drug treatment and testing order. The court must also explain in open court its reasons for giving custody.
	There is a further requirement where the court is considering making a Detention and Training Order on an offender below the age of 15: the court must additionally be satisfied that the young person is a persistent offender. (The Detention and Training Order is the standard order for offenders under 18 who are sentenced to custody).

Youth Justice System

David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to ensure that the principle of non-discrimination is fully implemented within the youth justice system.

Paul Goggins: In 2004–05, the Youth Justice Board (YJB) for England and Wales will have a new diversity target. The precise form of words is still to be agreed but the aim will be to ensure that local youth offending teams in England and Wales have measures in place to tackle differential outcomes for different ethnic groups within the youth justice system.
	To support this target, the YJB are working with the National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders to help youth offending teams to produce action plans. This work will be informed by research commissioned by the YJB from Oxford University looking at the experiences of young black people in the youth justice system. This research is due to be published early in 2004.

Youth Justice System

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) secure children's home places and (b) places for children in prison were available in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2003; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: In April 2000, the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (YJB) assumed responsibility for commissioning and purchasing secure accommodation for juveniles from the prison service, private sector, and local authority secure children's homes, and for setting and monitoring standards. Before then, there was no separate juvenile secure estate.
	Information is available on places in secure children's homes (see table) though not all would be used for young people in the criminal justice system. There were no designated places in 1997 for juveniles in prison service accommodation. For 2003–04, 3,066 places have been designated as being available for 15 to
	17-year-olds in Young Offender Institutions—Young people below the age of 15 are not held in prison service accommodation.
	In 2003, in addition to the above, 194 places in England and Wales are available in Secure Training Centres (STCs). No STCs were in operation in 1997.
	Places approved at local authority secure children's homes in 1997 and 2003 were as follows:
	
		
			  As at 31 March 
			  1997 2003 
		
		
			 England 330 425 
			 Wales 20 20 
			 England and Wales 350 445